300 ENERGY SOURCES—ALTERNATIVES
with synthetic materials. This dilemma suggests, for the long
term, the implementation of an all-electric economy based
on power plants consuming the more abundant nuclear fuels
and thereby conserving fossil fuel reserves.
A more detailed breakdown of energy utilization for spe-
cific applications within the household, commercial, industrial,
and transportation sectors is presented by Schurr.^6ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORSAll of the activities involved in supplying energy to the vari-
ous demand sectors have some impact on the environment.
The benefits to the human environment obtained in the uti-
lization of energy have a social and economic basis. These
benefits must be acknowledged and are also discussed in
some detail by Schurr.^6 Other environmental factors involved
in energy related activities may be measured in terms of land
use, employment and working conditions in energy indus-
tries, air and water pollution, radiation hazards, solid wastes,
and noise. These environmental factors are attributable to
either the characteristics of the energy resource utilized, or
to the technology used in the particular activity that is the
causative agent.Land UsePhysical space is required for all energy-related activities,
with mining, electric power production, and electric power
transmission being the largest users. The strip mining of coal
is especially damaging to the landscape and represents an
increasing method of recovery of coal, with about 34% of
the coal produced in 1968 mined by this technique. In 1965
about 1.3 10 6 acres were involved in strip mining and the
reclamation of this land was estimated to cost an average of
$230/acre for complete restoration and $149/acre for partial
restoration.^7 Strip mining areas are under study as possible
solid waste disposal sites to serve urban areas that are nearby,
where the cost of transporting the wastes is not excessive.Uranium mining poses potential problems similar to those of
coal mining but on a reduced scale. The effects of oil and gas
drilling, barring accidental discharges, are less severe.
Fuel shipments by rail and truck consume space with
attendant noise, hazards, and general inconvenience. In
1968 there were 209,478 miles of petroleum pipeline and
861,000 miles of natural gas pipeline in service, including
distribution lines.
The electric utilities require substantial areas of land
for power generation and transmission. About 400 acres of
land are required for a 3000 MW(t) nuclear power plant and
1200 acres are needed for a coal-fired plant of the same size,
including space for on-site coal and ash storage. These sites
are usually preferred near a source of cooling water, such
as a river, lake, or other body of water. There are also over
300,000 miles of high-voltage overhead electric transmis-
sion lines in service with an average right-of-way width of
110 feet, for a total land requirement of over 4 million acres.
This latter figure does not include local distribution lines
although there is a growing tendency to put these, as well as
high voltage transmission lines, underground. There is about
2400 miles of underground transmission line in use in the
69 to 345 kV range. Electrical energy cannot be conveniently
stored in large quantities and some utilities use pumped stor-
age facilities to satisfy peak electrical demands. Elevated
water reservoirs are required at pumped storage sites and,
like hydroelectric power plants, they are usually located in
mountainous areas where there are natural sources of water.
The electric utilities are facing severe problems in the siting
of new facilities. Recognizing these difficulties and the grow-
ing demand for electric power, the Energy Policy staff of the
OST has recommended^8 more long-range integrated planning
by utilities, participation in this planning by environmental
agencies, and notice to the public of new plant sites at least
five years in advance of construction. In addition to calling
for an expanded research and development program on pollu-
tion controls and improved generation techniques, the report
asks for more attention to underground power transmission
and advanced siting approaches such as offshore locations
and underground nuclear installations. The availability of a
transmission grid that could move very large blocks of power
over some distance would relieve some siting constraints and
could also improve service reliability.
In spite of numerous studies and analyses of locations
and transmission systems, the above described experiments,
tendencies, and intentions differ from the actual energy real-
ity. The high tension up to 1100 kV (a.c.) serves less for the
integration of long distance nuclear power plant capacities
but formation of strong and dependable grids of interconnec-
tion which partly already pass over the border of neighbor-
hood countries. Such transmission lines are planned mainly
for the safety of supply of electricity in big areas of demand
and for the compensation of peak loads respectively for the
support of transmission systems when power plants and trans-
mission lines drop out of operation. Regarding the field of
production, the energy reality leads to realize the inclination
to build the thermal power plants, that means in the future
mainly the nuclear power plants, in case this technologyTABLE 3
Domestic demand for crude oil products, 1968^3 (millions of barrels)Gasoline—motor gasoline 1925
aviation gasoline 30
Jet fuel—naphtha type 127
kerosene type 222
Special naphthas 27
Kerosine 103
Distillate fuel oil 863
Residual fuel oil 680
Lubricants, wax, coke, asphalt, road oil, and still gas 427
Liquefied gases for fuel and chemicals 386
Petrochemical feedstock 93
Miscellaneous 17
Total domestic product demand 4900C005_006_r03.indd 300C005_006_r03.indd 300 11/18/2005 12:05:46 PM11/18/2005 12:05:46 PM