Homework Question on Energy
- In one long paragraph that is no more than one page,
- What is the difference between the “Net Energy Cliff” of Kurt Cobb (and others) and the “Seneca Cliff” of Ugo Bardy?
- How do these relate to EROEI (or EROI) of tech. like fracking? using Ugo Bardi’s blog and his book “Extracted pg.168-170) as sources
Homework Answer on Energy
The Net energy cliff of Kurt Cobb is considered as the turning point in the graph that shows the energy output and the energy input. It is when the curve gets to the point of around 6 before a fall off (Extracted 169). In the earlier days, when there was enough oil production, the Net energy cliff ratio ranged at 100 to 1. However, this has fallen to a ratio of 11 to 1. This means that the net energy has been on the decline drastically.
However, this has not fallen below 5. On the other hand, the Seneca Cliff of Ugo Bardi is the propensity of systems to disintegrate after reaching their peak levels during operation. In most occasions, the disintegration is often smooth. However, the collapse process may also be punctuated or rough (Extracted 180). The main effect of the Seneca Cliff is that it promotes decline more than the growth of a system and resources. For example, the North Atlantic fish industry experienced a collapse due to a drop in the resource production process.
These resources included the renewable once hence creating a “Seneca curve” for the fish industry. In his blog, Bardi brings out the fact that the Seneca curve shows the lack of exploitation of the non-renewable resources in the environments of free market (“Cassandra’s Legacy”). The Net energy cliff of Kurt Cobb and the Seneca curve are both important in the energy sector. The net energy cliff gives the importance of the Energy Return on Investment (EROI) in terms of offering the alternatives for energy.