WorksheetsNatural Resources
Total questions: 15
Worksheet time: 8mins
1. Daily choices that humans make affect the environment. Sometimes, our lifestyles can harm
the environment. For example, fossil fuel power plants generate waste in the form of air
emissions, thermal releases and climatic impacts. Which of the following statements would be
most helpful in protecting the environment from fossil fuel power plants?
Using solar power to generate electricity.
Buying fewer mass produced products.
Buying paper products made from harvested trees.
Using natural gas as a fuel source instead of petroleum
Offshore drilling is a common practice for obtaining oil for human use. Oil can be used for
transportation fuels, production of plastic, and making electricity.Which of the following
statements best describes an environmental concern with using offshore drilling to obtain oil?
Offshore drilling requires a large amount of energy input to obtain a small amount of oil.
Offshore drilling produces oil that cannot be used directly, therefore requiring further
expensive processing.
Offshore drilling is not cost effective because it requires specialized equipment to drill the
oil.
Offshore drilling can lead to a contamination of marine ecosystems that threaten the
organisms living there.
Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy
content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement
industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from iron ore and for cement production.
Predict a negative effect that could occur over the next 50 years if coal mining increased.
Coal mining could produce acid rain causing burns to human skin.
Coal mining creates nuclear energy that causes immediate death
Coal mining can reduce the natural environment in the surrounding land.
Coal from mining can wash into bodies of water and cause an overgrowth of algae.
Scientists are currently researching new ways to obtain energy from our natural, renewable
resources. Which statement gives the best explanation of the benefits of renewable resources.
Renewable resources are nonrenewable and expensive to produce.
Renewable resources are versatile and emit various amounts of pollution.
Renewable resources generates energy that produces no greenhouse gases.
Renewable resources are natural, but cause destruction of land surrounding production.
Oil is one of the most common non-renewable resources on Earth. Human consumption of oil
is happening at a rate that may cause concern. Which of the following would be evidence that
humans have reached peak oil consumption?
There is a decreased demand for oil globally.
Oil is easily accessible in many locations on Earth.
Oil requires greater lengths and expenses to obtain.
The cost of oil has dropped in many developed countries.
Salmon consumption worldwide is three times higher than it was in 1980. What was once a
luxury food is now among the most popular fish species consumed in the U.S., Europe, and
Japan. How did humans adjust to the high demand for this limited natural resource and allow
the salmon populations to rebuild and stabilize?
Salmon farming was introduced to help produce more salmon for market.
Restaurants increased the sale of salmon to reduce the consumption of salmon.
Fish companies reduced the price of salmon to allow for more human consumption
Fisherman created more jobs to look for more salmon and allow for more human
consumption.
The chart below shows energy consumption sources in the United States.
Which conclusion can be made regarding both the distribution of energy consumption in the
United States and the impact this energy consumption has on the environment?
The majority of energy consumed in the United States is produced using renewable
resources, which has a positive impact on the environment.
The majority of energy consumed in the United States is produced using renewable
resources, which has a negative impact on the environment.
The majority of energy consumed in the United States is produced using nonrenewable
resources, which has a positive impact on the environment.
The majority of energy consumed in the United States is produced using nonrenewable
resources, which has a negative impact on the environment.
Our oceans offer a variety of renewable and nonrenewable resources that we use for various
purposes. One such resource is sea salt. Sea salt can be extracted from the ocean through a
process called desalination. While this process helps provide an important resource (such as
salt and clean water) to human populations, it can also be costly. Removing large amounts of
salt from the Ocean can affect the pH of aquatic environments.pH is an important quantity that
reflects the chemical conditions of a solution. The pH can control the availability of nutrients,
biological functions, microbial activity, and the behavior of chemicals. Which statement best
classifies sea salt and describes its costs and benefits?
Sea salt is a renewable resource that is readily available, but production is not cost
effective.
Salt is a renewable resource that is processed with little energy input, but harvesting the
salt disrupts coastal ecosystems.
Sea salt is a nonrenewable resource that requires no processing, but at current rates, it
will eventually become unsustainable.
Sea salt is a nonrenewable resource that has a wide variety of uses, but harvesting from
the ocean can disrupt coastal ecosystems.
Deforestation is the clearance, or removal of a forest from land which is then converted to a
non-forest use. Deforestation can involve the conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or
urban use. The most concentrated deforestation occurs in tropical rainforests. Deforestation of
areas considered to be rich sources of genetic material could limit future agricultural and
medical advances for future generations. How could deforestation limit agricultural and medical
advances?
It can maintain the ecosystem equilibrium.
It can deplete the ecosystem’s ozone layer.
It can decrease the ecosystem’s biodiversity.
It can increase the ecosystem’s carrying capacity.
When scientists and interested citizen groups attempt to improve the quality of life for Earth’s
population there are some factors that need to be considered. To make a well rounded
decision it is important to look at environmental and economic concerns. What is general
consideration that can be made when making policy decisions?
To require that all natural areas surrounding Florida peninsula become marine
sanctuaries.
To remove regulations and monitoring efforts when they conflict with the development of
new residences.
To enact and enforce laws regarding the environment but without compromising the
needs of future generations.
To resettle areas where toxic dumps were found after natural bioremediation has removed
all dangers to humans.
In 1976, Congress passed the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act to increase recycling
and conservation efforts as waste became a bigger problem in an urbanized world. The slogan
“reduce, reuse, recycle” was used to educate the community on environmentally friendly
practices. Which of the following is a benefit of such conservation efforts?
An increase in pollution
A decrease in land availability
A decrease in human population
An increase in sustainable practices
Increased use of fossil fuels as an energy source has increased the amount of carbon dioxide
emissions into the atmosphere. The graph below shows the levels of carbon dioxide emissions
among renewable and nonrenewable resources.
How does the monitoring of carbon dioxide emissions with atmospheric levels of carbon
dioxide affect our decisions on both renewable and non-renewable energy sources?
Renewable and non-renewable resources both result in similar amounts of carbon dioxide
emissions, so this data does not affect our choice of renewable and non-renewable
energy resources.
Renewable resources generally result in lower carbon dioxide emissions, therefore our
goal should be to increase our use of renewable resources in order to slow our increase in
levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide.
Non-renewable resources generally result in lower carbon dioxide emissions, therefore
our goal should be to increase our use of non-renewable resources in order to slow our
increase in levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide.
Renewable resources generally result in lower carbon dioxide emissions, but they are
much more expensive when compared with non-renewable energy resources. Our goal
should be to increase our use of non-renewable resources in order to save on the costs of
using renewable resources.
Renewable energies generate from natural sources that can be replaced over a relatively short time scale. The following are examples of renewable energy resources except: Examples of renewable energies include solar, wind, hydro, geothermal and biomass.
solar
fossil fuels
wind
biomass
Nonrenewable energies come from resources that are not replaced or are replaced only very slowly by natural processes. The following are non-renewable energy sources except:
Fossil fuels
natural gas
nuclear energy
geothermal energy
There are 10 ways to conserve energy. Which is not a correct way to conserve energy?1. Take advantage of a home energy audit .2. Repair any electrical issues in the home. 3. Invest in energy-efficient appliances for the home. 4. Use power strips wherever possible 5. Switch to LED light bulbs 6. Set the water heater to the lowest comfortable setting. 7. Do laundry often and iron every morning.
8. Turn off televisions, radios and computer monitors when not in use. 9. Program the thermostat 10. Check that the home is insulated properly.
Statement number 1.
Statement number 5.
Statement number 7.
Statement number 10.
