Energy resources and how they are managed · Alberta Grade 6 · maddyhelps.com
Name
Date
Tick whether each energy resource is used as it is found (before processing) or only after it has been processed — refined, piped, or turned into electricity. Then weigh up a real choice.
Energy resource
Before processing
After processing
Wood burned in a campfire
Wind filling a sailboat's sail
Wind turning a turbine that makes electricity
Natural gas piped to a furnace
Sunlight turned into electricity by solar panels
A river turning a mill wheel
A town in southern Alberta is deciding whether to allow a wind farm nearby. One point for each:
Availability
People
Cost
Land and air
A coal mine has closed. What should happen to the land now, and who should have a say?
For the grown-up
Choosing energy
“Wood burned in a campfire…” before processing; “Wind filling a sailboat's sail…” before processing; “Wind turning a turbine that…” after processing; “Natural gas piped to a…” after processing; “Sunlight turned into electricity by…” after processing; “A river turning a mill…” before processing. The wind farm — availability: southern Alberta is one of the windiest parts of the province; people: some neighbours welcome the lease payments, others dislike the view and noise; cost: no fuel to buy, but a large cost to build and connect; land and air: no smoke or greenhouse gas while running, but land is used and birds can be harmed. The mine: responsible management means restoring the land, handling waste safely, and respecting the rights of people with a claim to that land, including First Nations.
Wind appears twice on purpose: filling a sail it is used before processing, turning a turbine it is processed into electricity. Alberta produces a great deal of oil and natural gas, and most of its electricity comes from natural gas, with wind and solar growing.