Module 10: Resources and Virginia Geology

Understanding natural resources is an important part of Earth science. Natural resources are incredibly valuable to society. The rocks, minerals, and energy that humans are able to harness from nature are responsible for the way people live their lives today. Everything you eat, wear, and use takes natural resources to create. Some of these resources are abundant and replenish themselves over time, but others are in relatively short supply and take more than a human lifetime to form. In this module, you will distinguish between types of resources, how they form, how they are harvested, and how humans use them. In addition, you will discover which natural resources are found in the state of Virginia. You will also investigate the environmental consequences of natural resource use and ways to conserve natural resources for future generations

Getting Started

How much do you know about the items in your home that utilize energy. Also, do you know how to save energy throughout your home? Visit the United States Department of Energy's Power Gobblin' Game to see if you can help the power-saving elf identify all of the energy wasters in the home.

 

Key Vocabulary

To view the definitions for these key vocabulary terms, visit the course glossary.

active solar power	geothermal power	point source pollution
algal bloom	Gulf of Mexico	renewable resource
anthracite	hydroelectric power	resource
Appalachian Plateau	invasive species	runoff
biomass	karst topography	sediment pollution
bituminous coal	lignite	submerged aquatic vegetation
Blue Ridge	natural gas	solar energy
Chesapeake Bay	non-point source pollution	solar panel
coal	nonrenewable	sub-bituminous coal
Coastal Plain	North Carolina Sounds	surface mine
conservation	nuclear fission	underground mine
crude oil	nuclear power	Valley and Ridge
dam	nutrient pollution	watershed
dead zone	passive solar energy	wetland
estuary	peat	wind energy
Fall Line	physiographic provinces
fossil fuels	Piedmont