Costs and benefits to fossil fuel alternatives
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can assess the costs and benefits of alternatives to fossil fuels.
Key learning points
- The UK's energy mix has diversified in response to policies of reducing carbon emissions and improving energy security.
- 2020 was the UK's first year in which more electricity came from alternatives to fossil fuels than from non-renewables.
- Alternatives to fossil fuels can reduce carbon emissions, improve energy security and diversify the energy mix.
- Alternatives to fossil fuels include biofuels, wind, solar, HEP and future technologies such as hydrogen.
- Alternatives to fossil fuels have both benefits and costs.
Keywords
Energy mix - the combination of different energy sources used by a country or a region. The energy mix can change over time
Energy security - the uninterrupted availability of energy sources at an affordable price
Carbon footprint - the total amount of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere by an individual, product, process, country, etc
Common misconception
If you got your electricity from 100% renewable energy sources, then your carbon footprint would be zero.
Even if all your electricity comes from renewables, other parts of your lifestyle (like the manufacture of the clothes you wear, the food you eat, the technology you use) still produce carbon emissions elsewhere — often in other countries.
Teacher tip
The UK's National Grid: Live service (grid.iamkate.com) provides a dashboard of live data on the UK's electricity generation and consumption, which could be a useful resource for students to explore in relation to energy mix and alternatives to fossil fuels.
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Which of these is a renewable energy source?
Q2.Which factor most influences energy use in high-income countries?
Q3.Why might a country want to reduce fossil fuel use?
Q4.What does an energy mix show?
Q5.Why might a country use more renewable energy in future?
Q6.Which energy source is most likely to run out first?
Assessment exit quiz
4 Questions
Q1.Match the keywords to their definitions.
A country's combination of energy sources
Having reliable and affordable energy avalibility
Total greenhouse gases caused by one person or activity
Q2.Which of the following is a renewable energy source?
Q3.Why might switching to renewables help a country’s energy security?
Q4.What is a common misunderstanding about 100% renewable electricity?
To help you plan your 11 geography lesson on: Costs and benefits to fossil fuel alternatives, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 11 geography lesson on: Costs and benefits to fossil fuel alternatives, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 4 geography lessons from the Energy unit, dive into the full secondary geography curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.