This video gives an overview of what is needed to generate and transport electricity from renewable energy sources in the United States.
One can conclude that the United States may not be ready to fully transition to utility-scale renewables without more transmission lines to transport the energy.
Teaching Tips
Positives
The animations and maps are very helpful in illustrating the concepts discussed.
Additional Prerequisites
It would help if students had some prior knowledge or understanding of how electricity is generated and transported currently.
Differentiation
Organize an excursion to visit an existing renewable energy power plant or introduce the idea of having a Lights Out Day at school or at home.
As a cross-curricular lesson in economics or accounting, students can research the costs of adding renewable energy in a small community, such as the school or their neighborhood.
Distributed solar and wind, along with batteries and gravity based water pump storage devices help solve this issue without building massive power lines across America. This could be researched for additional context.
Energy conservation, more efficient appliances and electronics, and reducing energy waste are HUGE opportunities to reduce the amount of electricity needed in the first place, which can be explored.
Scientist Notes
This resource is a 7-minute video that outlines a major issue with ramping up clean energy within the U.S.. Currently, there are not enough transmission lines to get the energy from where it could be produced to where it will be used. This resource describes the infrastructure challenges that will need to be overcome over the next years and decades. This resource is recommended for teaching.
Standards
Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS)
ETS1: Engineering Design
HS-ETS1-3 Evaluate a solution to a complex real-world problem based on prioritized criteria and trade-offs that account for a range of constraints, including cost, safety, reliability, and aesthetics, as well as possible social, cultural, and environmental impacts.
College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Standards
Dimension 2: Economics
D2.Eco.1.9-12 Analyze how incentives influence choices that may result in policies with a range of costs and benefits for different groups.
