Ways of reducing the use of resources — AQA GCSE Combined Science
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Ways of reducing the use of resources explained
End users — people and organisations that buy and use products — can cut environmental impact in three linked ways.
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Reducing use means buying and consuming less, for example choosing products with less packaging or keeping a phone longer. Reusing means using an item again for the same or a new purpose, such as refilling a water bottle or passing on clothes. Recycling means collecting and reprocessing materials, such as melting used aluminium cans into new ones. Each action lowers demand for limited resources like metal ores and crude oil, saves the energy needed to extract and process raw materials, cuts the waste sent to landfill and reduces pollution and habitat damage. The three approaches are complementary, and reducing use usually saves the most because no new processing is needed.
Metals, glass, building materials, clay ceramics and most plastics are produced from limited raw materials. Much of the energy for the processes comes from limited resources. Obtaining raw materials from the Earth by quarrying and mining causes environmental impacts.
Everyday materials such as metals, glass, building materials, clay ceramics and most plastics begin as raw materials extracted from the Earth, and these reserves are limited. Producing them also needs large amounts of energy, often from finite fossil fuels. Extraction itself, by quarrying at the surface or mining underground, scars landscapes, destroys habitats, creates noise and dust, and leaves waste heaps. For example, making iron from iron ore requires mining, transport and heating in a blast furnace, each step using energy and releasing pollution. Because supplies are finite and damage is real, reducing demand through reuse and recycling matters.
Some products, such as glass bottles, can be reused. Glass bottles can be crushed and melted to make different glass products. Other products cannot be reused and so are recycled for a different use.
Reuse means using a product again for the same purpose without reprocessing it, such as refilling a glass bottle. Recycling means processing a material so it can be used again, often for a different product. Glass bottles can be reused directly, or crushed and melted to make new glass items, which saves raw materials such as sand and energy compared with starting from scratch. Some products, such as broken glass or mixed plastics, cannot be reused, so they are recycled into different items. Both approaches reduce demand for finite resources and cut the environmental impact of extraction and manufacture.
Metals can be recycled by melting and recasting or reforming into different products. The amount of separation required for recycling depends on the material and the properties required of the final product. For example, some scrap steel can be added to iron from a blast furnace to reduce the amount of iron that needs to be extracted from iron ore.
Recycling a metal means melting it so it can be recast or reformed into a new product, rather than extracting fresh metal from its ore. How much sorting is needed first depends on the scrap and on what the new product must do: mixed or contaminated scrap gives a poorer alloy, so it may need separating, whereas clean scrap of one metal can be melted directly. For example, some scrap steel can be added to molten iron from a blast furnace, so less iron ore must be extracted. The scrap dilutes impurities and is adjusted to the required composition, then cast or rolled into new steel products.
Students should be able to evaluate ways of reducing the use of limited resources, given appropriate information.
Evaluating means using supplied information to judge how well a method reduces use of a limited resource, then reaching a supported conclusion. For a metal, you might compare recycling with extracting from ore using data on ore conserved, energy used, cost and product quality. Weigh the benefits, such as less ore extracted and less energy used, against drawbacks, such as sorting, transport and loss of properties. A good evaluation states the criteria, uses the figures given, compares options fairly and concludes which method reduces resource use most, while noting any uncertainty in the data.
Your focus
- Describe how reducing use, reusing and recycling materials by end users lowers demand for limited resources and energy.
- Explain how these actions reduce waste and environmental impacts such as pollution and habitat damage.
- Distinguish between reducing, reusing and recycling, and give a relevant example of each.
Show all 15 objectives
- Identify the raw materials and energy sources used to produce common materials.
- Describe environmental impacts caused by quarrying and mining.
- Explain why reducing use of finite raw materials and energy is important.
- Distinguish reuse from recycling using correct definitions.
- Describe how glass bottles can be reused or crushed and melted into new products.
- Explain why some products are recycled rather than reused.
- Describe how metals are recycled by melting and recasting or reforming into different products.
- Explain how the amount of separation required depends on the material and the properties required of the final product.
- Explain how adding scrap steel to iron from a blast furnace reduces the amount of iron extracted from iron ore.
- Interpret information about methods of reducing use of limited resources.
- Weigh benefits against drawbacks to judge how effectively each method reduces resource use.
- Reach and justify a conclusion using the information provided.
Ways of reducing the use of resources exam tips
Marking Points
- Defines reduction in use, reuse and recycling as actions taken by end users, distinguishing them from actions by manufacturers or governments.
- Explains that using fewer raw materials conserves limited resources such as metal ores, crude oil and the finite materials used in electronics.
- Explains that less extraction and processing means less energy from sources such as fossil fuels is needed, lowering associated emissions.
- Explains that less material is discarded, so waste sent to landfill is reduced and environmental impacts such as pollution and habitat damage are lowered.
- Links the three approaches together, noting that reducing use avoids processing altogether, reuse extends an item's life, and recycling recovers material that would otherwise be wasted.
- States that metals, glass, building materials, clay ceramics and most plastics are made from raw materials that are limited or finite.
- Explains that much of the energy used to extract and process these materials comes from limited resources such as fossil fuels.
- Describes environmental impacts of quarrying and mining, such as habitat destruction, landscape damage, noise, dust and waste.
- Links the use of finite raw materials and energy to the need to reduce consumption, for example by reuse or recycling.
- Uses a named example, such as iron ore for steel or limestone for cement, to show extraction and processing demands.
- Defines reuse as using a product again for the same purpose without changing it.
- Defines recycling as processing a material so it can be used again, often for a different product.
- Uses glass bottles as an example of reuse and of crushing and melting to make new glass products.
- Explains that some products cannot be reused and are instead recycled for a different use.
- Links reuse and recycling to reduced demand for raw materials and energy.
- Recycling involves melting scrap metal and recasting or reforming it into different products, so the metal is used again instead of being discarded.
- The degree of separation needed before melting depends on the material being recycled and on the properties required of the final product.
- Scrap that is mixed or contaminated may need sorting or refining because unwanted elements change the properties of the recycled metal.
- Adding some scrap steel to iron from a blast furnace reduces the amount of iron that must be extracted from iron ore.
- Recycling conserves limited metal ores and can use less energy than extracting metal from its ore, though transport and processing still use resources.
- The properties of the final product, such as strength or corrosion resistance, determine how pure or how well sorted the recycled metal must be.
- Use the information provided, such as data on ore use, energy, cost or product quality, rather than unsupported opinion.
- State the criteria for judging a method, for example how much of the limited resource is conserved or how much energy is used.
- Compare methods by weighing benefits against drawbacks, such as reduced ore extraction against sorting, transport and processing costs.
- Reach a justified conclusion that identifies which method reduces use of the limited resource most effectively and why.
- Recognise that a method may reduce use of one resource while increasing use of another, such as energy or water.
- Comment on the reliability or limitations of the given information, for example whether the data are complete or comparable.
Examiner Tips
- 💡Name the three actions explicitly and give one everyday example of each, such as buying less packaging, refilling a bottle and recycling cans.
- 💡Link each action to at least one benefit from the statement: limited resources, energy sources, waste or environmental impacts.
- 💡Use precise terms such as finite resources, energy sources and landfill rather than vague phrases like helps the planet.
- 💡Name the material and its raw source, such as glass from sand or steel from iron ore, to show understanding.
- 💡Use words like finite, limited and non-renewable when describing raw materials and energy sources.
- 💡Give at least two specific environmental impacts rather than writing only that mining is bad.
- 💡Define reuse and recycling clearly before giving examples, so the difference is obvious.
- 💡Use glass bottles as a concrete example for both reuse and recycling.
- 💡State the benefit, such as saving raw materials or energy, when describing each method.
- 💡Link the amount of separation to two things: the material being recycled and the properties needed in the final product.
- 💡Use the blast-furnace example precisely: scrap steel is added to iron from a blast furnace, reducing iron ore extraction.
- 💡When comparing recycling with extraction, refer to conserving limited resources and to energy use, not just to litter or landfill.
- 💡Quote or refer to specific figures from the information to support each judgement you make.
- 💡Use comparative connectives such as whereas, however and therefore to weigh benefits against drawbacks.
- 💡Finish with a clear concluding sentence naming the better method and the criterion on which you judged it.
Common Mistakes
- Confusing reuse with recycling; correction: reuse uses the item again, perhaps for a different purpose, while recycling reprocesses the material into a new product.
- Claiming recycling removes all environmental impact; correction: collecting, transporting and reprocessing still use energy and resources, so reduction and reuse are often more effective.
- Saying resources are unlimited or that recycling creates new raw material from nothing; correction: resources such as metal ores are finite, and recycling only recovers material already extracted.
- Saying raw materials are renewable: correction — metal ores, limestone and crude oil are finite and will run out.
- Confusing quarrying with mining: correction — quarrying is at the surface, mining goes underground, but both damage the environment.
- Claiming all plastics come from plants: correction — most plastics are made from crude oil, a limited resource.
- Treating reuse and recycling as the same thing: correction — reuse keeps the item, recycling reprocesses the material.
- Saying glass cannot be recycled: correction — glass is crushed and melted to make new glass products.
- Assuming every product can be reused: correction — many products, such as broken or mixed materials, cannot be reused and are recycled instead.
- Thinking all scrap metal can be melted together without sorting; in fact separation depends on the material and the properties required of the final product.
- Assuming recycling always needs no energy; melting and transport still require energy, even though less ore is extracted.
- Believing scrap steel added to blast-furnace iron is waste; it is a useful feedstock that reduces the amount of iron ore that needs to be extracted.
- Listing advantages and disadvantages without reaching a conclusion; an evaluation must judge which option is better and justify it.
- Ignoring the information supplied and writing general opinions about recycling; the evaluation must be based on the given data.
- Treating one factor, such as cost, as the only criterion; a balanced evaluation considers several criteria and their trade-offs.