107 Expand your vocabulary: Energy production Copy the highlighted expressions into your notebook and make sure you know what they mean. Then try to find pairs of expressions and write five meaningful sentences. You can only use each word once. Example: A disadvantage of wind power is that it can generate noise pollution. Now read through the text again and match each of the following with four different verbs. 1 water 2 energy 3 fossil fuels (coal, gas) Example: store water Find three or more adjectives you can use to describe a source of energy. Example: renewable Which ways of energy production should be made more use of in Austria? Discuss your opinion with a partner and share your ideas in class. LANGUAGE 11 a b c SPEAKING 12 heat energy equal to that produced by around 4,500 tons of coal, it is energy-efficient. Nuclear power plants don’t burn carbon-based fuel, therefore no greenhouse gas emissions are produced. Thus, it can be considered a ‘clean’ source of energy, and uranium is in abundant supply, so will not run out anytime soon. However, there are higher costs due to safety and containment of hazardous materials, and there is the problem of long-term storage of radioactive waste. An accident in a nuclear power plant poses a huge threat to the environment. The most widely-used energy sources in the world are, of course, fossil fuels. These have been a cheap source of power and electricity since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. Fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas are formed from natural resources, namely the remains of prehistoric dead plants and animals. Despite the fact that coal is a greenhouse gas nightmare, it still provides about one quarter of the total energy the world uses, and produces around 40 percent of the electricity generated worldwide. Coal is relatively cheap, offers reliability and can produce large amounts of power. Natural gas is cleaner than coal, causes less pollution and is often used in combination with other fuels to decrease overall pollution in electricity generation. The burning of fossil fuels by humans is the largest source of emissions of carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming. Although coal and gas are reasonably cheap to extract, they are non-renewable, and these resources are depleting rapidly. 0 Why is hydroelectric power considered ‘clean’ energy? (it produces) no pollution 1 How is the production of hydroelectric power flexible in order to meet varying energy needs? 2 What is a harmful side effect of producing wind energy? (Give one answer.) 3 Why is solar energy not a cost-effective solution to energy production needs? (Give one answer.) 4 Why do nuclear power plants not contribute to global warming? 5 Why is natural gas combined with other fuels? 6 Apart from pollution, what is the biggest long-term problem with fossil fuels? Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv
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