Introduction

In Canada we take for granted many things that others in the world only dream about. The standard of living for the average Canadian is way above that of most other people of the world. A large part of what we enjoy is a result of the relatively low cost of the energy we consume to manufacture our goods, ship those products all over our country and to other parts of the world, drive out personal vehicles, heat and cool our homes and businesses, and enjoy our leasure time.

Oil has 2 main disadvantages as an energy source:

1. Deposits will run out soon
2. Burning oil produces 'greenhouse gases' and other pollutants

Teams of specialists will gather and compile information which will be presented to the DOE at these special hearings. Each specialist will present their report to the DOE during these special hearings. It has been decided that the teams will consist of seven representative groups:

• Biomass Energy Producers Team: desire funding to encourage the use of renewable resource plants and organic waste products to produce electrical energy.

• Hydroelectric Energy Team: who would like to see the federal government fund many new projects to harness the power of moving water in our nations rivers.

• Solar Energy Team: who feel that we have more energy that we can ever use if we harness the sun's rays .

• Nuclear Energy Engineering Team: who would like to see all of our electrical energy needs provided by various forms of nuclear power.

• The Wind Energy Organization: who feel that our energy crisis could be eliminated using the free power of the wind.

• Wave Energy Team: with enough funding will produce energy from the constant wave action of our oceans.

• Geothermal Energy Team: who desire funding to build geothermal generators at new locations where geothermal energy sources already exist.

Your task in "Energy Crisis" is to join a team and take on one of the roles listed above. You and your teammates will work together to create a Special Report for the DOE meeting that makes sense out of the complex issue of electrical power generation.

What forms of energy do we currently use to produce our electrical power? How is electricity produced? How does a generator work? Think about how you feel about our dependance on foreign oil? Do you really know enough about the subject to decide which form of electrical generation is the best?

So if we're faced with a difficult challenge, we must:

• work together with a common goal
• work smarter by sharing the responsibilities
• utilize available resources

These are the suggested strategies for success in "Energy Crisis"

Instructions

1. Each classroom team will be assigned one of the following forms of energy production. If you already know about one or more of the production methods and would like to present it, let the teacher know.

• Biomass Energy Team Member . . . . . . . .
• Geothermal Energy Team Member . . . . . . . . . . . . .
• Hydroelectric Power Team Member . . . . . .
• Nuclear Energy Team Member . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
• Solar Energy Team Member . . . . . . . . . . .
• Wind Energy Team Member . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
• Wave Energy Team Member . . . . . . . . . . ..

2. Once you have been assigned a production method that your team will investigate, obtain the information for your role by clicking on the appropriate briefcase above.

3. Read the contents of the briefcase to get a feel for your tasks. Analyze how your role relates to the other members on your team.

4. Brainstorm a list of the types of resources/information that you think would be useful to gain your insights on electrical power generation.

5. Explore the "Resources" below (as well as any available in the school or public library) to see which might match with your brainstormed list.

6. Record the names of the internet, video, classroom, or library resources next to the items on your brainstorming list.

7. Add any internet resources that you think might be valuable for your search.

On the Net: Website Investigation

1. Explore the resources that you think would be most appropriate for your Team.

2. Collect (Copy & Paste) five items of information (pictures and/or text) that you think represent the topic you are exploring. Remember to keep track of the URL (the code that appears in the "Location" line in the browser).

3. For each block of information, make sure you know why you believe it is a good example for the topic.

4. Answer the "Status Report" and "Values Assessment" questions in your briefcase.

5. Once you have finished your search, choose the best items of information for your topic.

The "Action Plan"

Decide on the benefits and disadvantages of your energy source.. With many of these alternative sources of electrical power generation come environmental issues. Will your form of electrical production pollute the environment? Will people living near the generating plants have to put up with ugly structures and noisy machinery running in their back yards? Are there any long-term health hazards related to your form of electrical production?

The Special Report

Your report should clearly give the good things and the bad bits about your energy source.  Using Power Point, then your items of information can be pasted onto the presentation slides. Be creative. It is your job to argue your perspective effectively.  Your presentation should take no more than 5 minutes.  You are allowed a maximum of 12 slides.

Use the resources below to conduct your search. There are no perfect solution to this exploration. See if you can add some real understanding and insight to our energy crisis.

Internet Resources

Biomass Energy

http://www.biomass.org/

http://www.elsevier.nl/inca/publications/store/9/8/6/

http://www.generalbiomass.com/

http://www.agriculturalwaste.com/technology/energyPage.htm

Geothermal Energy 

http://geothermal.id.doe.gov/

http://id.inel.gov/geothermal/powerplants.html

http://iga.igg.cnr.it/geothermal.htm

Hydroelectric Energy

http://www.soton.ac.uk/~engenvir/environment/alternative/hydropower/hydrenvi.htm

http://home.earthlink.net/~dumych/

https://www.nwp.usace.army.mil/hdc/hdpowr.htm

http://www.hooverdam.com/workings/main.htm

http://www.desertusa.com/colorado/lm_nra/hoover/du_hoover.html

http://www.sunsetcities.com/hoover-dam.html

Nuclear Energy

http://www-formal.stanford.edu/jmc/progress/nuclear-faq.html

http://www.ans.org/about/history/

http://www.ida.liu.se/~her/npp/demo.html

http://www.uic.com.au/ne.htm

Solar Energy

http://www.solarelectricpower.org/

http://64.243.182.248/going_solar/intro.cfm

http://64.243.182.248/going_solar/ABCs_Thermal.cfm

Wind Energy

http://www.iowawind.org/

http://www.spirit-lake.k12.ia.us/html/dist/B&G/Building.htm

http://www.windpower.org/

http://www.state.ia.us/dnr/energy/index.htm

http://www.windustry.org/

Wave Energy

http://www.wavegen.co.uk/resour.htm%20Wave%20Energy

http://www.owec.com/

http://www.oceanor.no/projects/wave_energy/

http://www.eren.doe.gov/RE/ocean_wave.html

http://www.phys.ntnu.no/instdef/grupper/miljofysikk/bolgeforsk/index-e.html

General Energy Information

Site with lots of information about electric energy use in the world (stresses to use of nuclear power)

http://www.uic.com.au/ne.htm

Union of Concerned Scientists

http://www.ucsusa.org/

Center for Energy and Environmental Education

http://spider.cns.uni.edu/ceee

Center for Global and Regional Environmental Research

http://www.cgrer.uiowa.edu/

Please feel free to use your classroom text as a reference.

Check our school library and the public libraries for books relating to the production of electrical energy.

Conclusion

You now have a better understanding of alternate energy sources and the difficulties faced by countries with respect to energy production and consumption.

Last revised November 12, 2003 by R. Mirani - Gladstone Secondary School

Original webquest created by and permission to use granted by Jim Peters

copyright © 2003

email at jpeters@rockingham.k12.va.us

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