COAL

NATURAL RESOURCE FACTS

• Natural resources are in limited supply, because it takes Earth so long to make them.
• Fossil Fuels are made from organic matter.
• Fossil Fuels: Coal, Natural Gas, Crude Oil

STEPS TO MAKE COAL

• Plants die sinking to the bottom of a swampy wetland forming Peat.
• Then Peat gets cover in sand, gravel, ect.
• Other Sedimentary rocks form their pressure helps to squeeze water out of Peat.
• This Peat gets covered in more layers of sand and gravel.
• With the help of heat Peat then turns into Coal.

WAYS COAL IS COLLECTED

• Surface Mining: retrieving coal that is less than 200 feet below ground
• Types: Strip Mining, Open- Pit Mining, and Mountaintop Removal Mining (MTR)
• Underground Mining : retrieving coal that is deep underground.
• Types: Longwall Mining, Room and Pillar Mining, and Retreat Mining

TYPES OF COAL

• Peat- not coal but in that family since it has plant energy
• Lignite- lowest rank of coal and lowest in energy
• Sub-Bituminous Coal- 2nd lowest rate of energy and rank of coal
• Bituminous Coal- 2nd highest rank of coal and rate of energy
• Anthracite- highest rate of energy and rank of coal
• Graphite- in the coal family

TOP PRODUCING COUNTRIES

• China
• United States
• India
• Germany
• Australia

Coal has an immediate impact on air quality contributing to global warming.

Switching to a new type of resources would take time.