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Topic 3 UK ENVIRONMENTAL CHALLENGES - Coggle Diagram
Topic 3
UK ENVIRONMENTAL CHALLENGES
Energy management in the UK
natural gas supplies more that 50% of the UKs energy, coal 30% and nuclear 16%.
In 1950- all the energy in the UK came from the coal that was mined in the UK and coal was used directly in industry and homes to provide heating and hot water
Since 1960-
coal use has declined a lot as mines closed.
oil use has increased due to closer production from the north sea
natural gas and nuclear use increased due new many new plants.
Use of renewables increased very slowly due to high construction costs and an abundance of non-renewables
many changes have taken place since the government and international organizations reflected on UK energy in 1950
miners strike 1984-85 meant less coal and more energy sources became available
oil began to be produced in the UK instead of importing it making it cheaper
restrictions on use of gas where taken away
The EU and UK have set limits on carbon emissions leading to less use of hydro- carbons (coal and oil)
use of energy in the UK has risen since 1950 due to-
growth in population
more demands in the home
more industry and transport
use of energy in the UK has decreased since 2005 due to-
an increase in energy prices
homes became more energy efficient- insulated homes and efficient technology
Environmentalism- awareness of our carbon footprint and efforts by the energy saving trust
EU target of reducing carbon emissions by 40% by 2030
EU 'energy label' gives energy efficient products.
EU adopted the 'energy efficient plan' which encourages the construction of energy efficient homes
energy sustainability plans
national
increase contribution of renewable sources - community's encouraged to invest in micro- schemes to generate electricity.
encourage energy saving and conservation
develop nuclear energy- whilst not renewable, it has low carbon emissions and uses material that can be reused. renewables will never fill all of the UKs demands and nuclear can be a long- term alternative which is sustainable.
develop carbon capture and storage- carbon can now be caught from power stations and stored underground in rocks or aquifers.
local
in the UK there are many local sustainable energy projects, including wind turbines, micro- hydro schemes and anaerobic digesters.
while most schemes involve private funding, financial and technical support can be provided from the government.
CASE STUDY- anaerobic digestion, Silloth, Cumbria
in 2011, this system was installed in an isolated farming community in North - West England.
it uses farm slurry and silage made and grown locally which generates electricity to power 4000 homes.
it cost about £4 million, money came from government grants, loans and private investments
anaerobic digestion is like a cows stomach- bacteria is used to break down slurry and silage without oxygen creating methane - rich biogas.
methane is burned as a fuel to generate electricity which is sold to the national grid to make profit
in addition the waste organic matter forms valuable fertilizer and heat produced by the plant is used locally.
development of renewables in UK
worlds first hydro- electric power station began in Scotland 1967, water moves from one loch through turbines into a lower loch then at night when demand is less the water is pumped back up again.
in 1970 rise in oil prices and coal miners strikes started government researching renewable energy- the first being wave power but that proved too expensive
1986 Southampton started using geothermal heat for hot water and many wind turbines had been constructed
UKs use of renewables increased by 25% between 1990 and 2015
UKs future energy supply- despite growth in renewables, UK is still dependent on fossil fuels. natural gas and nuclear have low carbon emissions and are efficient, because of this there are strong arguments about continuing non-renewables in the future
nuclear debate
nuclear energy is 19% of UKs electricity
many of UKs nuclear plants are reaching the ends of their lives
nuclear power stations are extremely expensive
however they offer efficient sustainable power for the future
fracking debate- only location is in Lancashire as there are concerns of minor earthquakes and underwater pollution
CASE STUDY - HINKLEY POINT C power station
Hinkley point C will be the third nuclear power station on the north Somerset coast
Hinkley point A was completed in 1965 and was decommissioned by 2000
Hinkley point B was commissioned in 1976 and is expected to stay operational till 2023, it is operated by the French energy company EDF.
2015- china agreed to fund third of the cost for Hinkley point C
The plant will be ran by EDF and is expected to start generating electricity in 2025.
high costs involved may lead to electricity costs increasing
however more jobs will be created and over 5 million homes will have electricity
Factors effecting UKs future energy supply
economic
high cost of nuclear and gas- fired power stations
new power stations= price increase in electricity
North sea supplies dwindling increasing prices for oil and gas
local community renewable projects have to be cost effective, most require loans.
political
Fracking is a political issue
agreements with other nations to supply UK with secure energy
to what extent should foreign country's operate UK energy
will the government continue to encourage renewables with grants
Environmental
UK needs to use low carbon fuels to decrease carbon footprint
environmental concerns may prevent expansion of renewables- wind/ solar farms
Uses of environments and ecosystems in UK
Providing Food
Farming- becoming intensive, using machinery, technology and chemicals to maximize production. Increased level of food security but changes ecosystems and environments significantly.
hedges removed to make fields large, to fit large machinery and maximize yields, destroying habitats and wildlife corridors
intensive farming doesn't allow fallow periods for fields to recover so soil becomes dry and crumbly making it prone to soil erosion by water and wind
heavy machinery compresses soils leading to surface flooding
chemicals in fertilizers and pesticides lead to water pollution
Fishing- in UK commercial fishing uses large sophisticated trawlers to catch large amounts of fish in the North sea although a lot less boats go out now.
commercial fishing has led to less fish stocks
some trawlers catch fish of all sizes preventing smaller fish from growing to replace caught ones- unbalances ecosystems
sometimes unwanted fish get caught- dolphins
fishing boats travel far to locate fish- uses up diesel and releases more fossil fuels
Providing Energy
Wind farms- important source of renewable, clean energy- however controversial
onshore wind farms are on high land in the countryside ruining landscape, effecting tourism ie lake district
turbines are noisy effecting locals
Offshore wind farms are less controversial although interfere bird migration and disturbed seabed ecosystems
Fracking- injection of water and chemicals into rocks to extract oil and gas. highly controversial in UK. in 2016 fracking was allowed in Lancashire
pollution of underground water sources and soils as fluids have toxic chemicals.
fracking may cause mini earthquakes
Providing Water
water supply in the UK is an issue because the supply is in the North and West but the demand is in the south and east. solutions include...
reservoirs built to store water then transfer it to areas of high demand e.g. Elan valley water transfer scheme where Birmingham is supplied from wales via the Craig Goch dam and reservoir
reservoirs and water transfer schemes can effect environments and ecosystems
Reservoirs
they ruin landscapes, flood agricultural land, ecosystems and settlements
they trap sediment and prevent its natural transportation down-stream
Dam construction harms ecosystems
Water transfer schemes
water characteristics may be mixed
river channels will become silted leading to flooding
construction of pipelines effects ecosystems
Energy sources in the UK
renewable energy- doesn't run out and is non-polluting generally
Biomass- burning of dung or plant matter such as sugar cane or maize. used as transport fuel and 5% of UK electricity
Wind- turbines on land or at sea, generate electricity- UK is one of Europe's most windy country's. used for 10% of UK electricity- has considerable future
Hydro (HEP)- large dams filtering out water which turns underwater turbines to generate electricity. they are expensive and controversial supplying 1.4% of UKs electricity
Geothermal- water heated underground by hot rocks creates steam which turns turbines. there are only small geothermal projects in UK e.g. Southampton
Tidal- turbines in barrages or across river estuaries (mouths) generate electricity from rising and falling tides. none in the UK due to high costs and environmental concerns.
Wave- waves force air into a chamber which turns a turbine, some experimental sites are in the UK but costs are high.
Solar- cells on solar panels convert light and heat from the sun into electricity. during summer this generates lots and there are lots of solar farms in the UK.
non- renewable energy- will one day run out and are often polluting
Coal- main energy source in the UK, it is only extracted from large opencast pits now.
Natural gas- nearly half of the UKs electricity, in the past it mainly came from the North sea but today it is more imported.
Nuclear- non- renewable because it uses uranium. it is a very important source of power in the UK. there are 16 reactors generating 20% of the UKs electricity currently.
All nuclear power stations are located on the coast as they require tons of water for cooling they also need to be near to the ports where the uranium is imported.
UK energy mix
for clear image go to:
https://www.carbonbrief.org/five-charts-show-the-historic-shifts-in-uk-energy-last-year
the amount of energy supplied from different sources which is used in the UK
extreme weather in the UK
key terms
Prevailing winds- the most common wind direction, affects the UK from the south- west, travelling over the warm Atlantic ocean bringing moderate temperatures and high rainfall.
Air mass- large body of air in the atmosphere which transfers heat and moisture as it travels from its source- UK is affected by many. Air mass examples-
Tropical maritime- from Atlantic, warm moist air brings cloud, rain and mild weather.
Tropical continental- from central Europe/ north Africa, hot dry air brings sunny weather.
Polar maritime- from Greenland/ arctic sea, wet cold air brings showery weather
Polar continental- from central Europe, cold with snow during winter
Arctic maritime- from Arctic, wet cold air brings snow in winter
North Atlantic drift- a warm ocean current originating in the Caribbean bringing warm conditions to the west of the British Isles, this is why they have less harsh winters
Continentality- masses that come over land so don't carry much moisture e.g. from Europe. this is why central Europe has cold winters and hot summers.
Tropical Maritime air mass causes extreme weather
Feb 2014 UK was battered by many winter storms caused by strong westerly winds.
strong winds and huge waves made areas in south and west dangerous and caused transport disruption.
the South West mainline railway was damaged at Dawlish Devon
Many coastal community's e.g. Cornwall, Devon and Dorset were flooded and had damaged infrastructure, buildings and sea defenses.
many trees were felled by the wind, leaving 100,000s of homes and businesses powerless and roofs were damaged
Arctic maritime air mass causes extreme weather
Dec 2009- Jan 2010 most of UK had heavy snow and extreme cold conditions which normally only Scotland experiences
night time temperatures went below -10 Celsius
Deep snow fell over the UK and up to 20cm in England
transport was badly effected
ice brought down powerlines
several people died due to ice and snow
farm animals across UK were severely effected especially sheep in mountain regions
extreme flood events in the UK
With climate change flooding is becoming more frequent in the UK major flooding events include-
North- West regions (lake district) suffer series of harsh winter storms- December 2015
River Severn floods surrounding towns and villages- July 2007
Somerset levels flood from incessant rainfall for several weeks- January 2014 (case study on separate coggle)
