Page 146 - The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 11 and 12: Science, 2008 (revised)

Grade 12, University Preparation
e1. analyse technologies used to explore for and extract Earth materials, and assess the economic and environmental impact of the exploitation of such materials;
e2. investigatethepropertiesofmineralsandcharacteristicsofrocks,includingthoseintheirlocalarea;
e3. demonstrate an understanding of the properties of minerals and the formation and characteristics of rocks.
E1. Relating Science to Technology, Society, and the Environment
E2. Developing Skills of Investigation and Communication
e. eArth mAteriAlS OVERALL EXPECTATIONS
By the end of this course, students will:
THE ONTARIO CURRICULUM, GRADES 11 AND 12 | science
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
By the end of this course, students will:
e1.1 assess the direct and indirect impact on local, provincial/regional, or national econ- omies of the exploration for and extraction and refinement/processing of Earth materials (e.g., gold, uranium, sand, gravel, dimension stone, fossil fuels) [AI, C]
Sample issue: Diamonds are prized for industrial and personal uses. The demand contributes to the existence of illegal trade in “blood diamonds”, in which stones mined in war zones are sold and the revenue is used to fund military action by insurgent groups. The protracted wars devastate local and national economies.
Sample questions: What are the effects on local economies of oil extraction in Alberta, transpor- tation by pipeline through the Prairies, and refinement in Ontario? How does the economic benefit of manufacturing items using a mineral resource compare to the economic benefits for the communities that mine the resource? What is the impact on the economy of local Aboriginal communities of diamond mining on their lands?
e1.2 analyse technologies and techniques used to explore for and extract natural resources, and assess their actual or potential environmental repercussions [AI, C]
Sample issue: Mountaintop removal is a coal- mining technique proposed for use near the headwaters of the Flathead River in British
Columbia. Mining companies favour the tech- nique because the coal can be removed more cheaply than in conventional mining. However, the process devastates the local environment, causing erosion, loss of terrestrial and aquatic habitat, and air and water pollution.
Sample questions: Why has there been so much protest against the proposed Mackenzie Valley pipeline in the Canadian North? What mining techniques have the greatest and the least impact on local water systems? How are assessments of the permeability and porosity of rock structures used to determine the location of fossil fuels? What impact has the extraction of oil from the Alberta oil sands had on the local environment?
By the end of this course, students will:
e2.1 use appropriate terminology related to Earth materials, including, but not limited to: geothermal vents, porosity, permeability, cleavage, fracture, cementation, evaporite, and foliation [C]
e2.2 investigate the properties of various Earth materials (e.g., density, conductivity, porosity; whether they are magnetic or radioactive), and explain how these properties affect how the materials are used and what technologies and techniques are used to explore for or extract them (e.g., radiometric instruments, electro- magnetic or gravity surveys) [PR, AI, C]
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