What is the difference between renewable and non-renewable resources? Provide two examples each in a Canadian context.

• A. Renewable: hydroelectric power, wind energy; Non-renewable: oil (oil sands), coal or minerals (nickel).
• B. Renewable: oil, coal; Non-renewable: hydroelectric, wind.
• C. Renewable: natural gas, uranium; Non-renewable: solar, biomass.
• D. Renewable: diamonds, nickel; Non-renewable: gold, silver.

Answer: (A)

Renewable resources are those that can be replenished naturally or are essentially inexhaustible on a human timescale. Non-renewable resources come from finite stores that form very slowly and cannot be replenished once used.

In Canada, two clear renewable examples are hydroelectric power and wind energy. Hydroelectric power uses flowing water to generate electricity, and as long as water cycles continue and rivers are managed responsibly, this supply can be sustained. Wind energy captures the sun-driven movement of air; wind is a renewable resource because it blows repeatedly and isn’t depleted by use.

For non-renewable resources, think of finite underground stores. Oil from the oil sands is a non-renewable fossil fuel, locked in deposits that take millions of years to form and can’t be replenished on human timescales. Nickel is another non-renewable resource; it’s a mineral mined from orebodies that don’t readily renew.

Other options mix up the idea by pairing non-renewables with renewables or treating finite minerals as renewable, which doesn’t fit how replenishment works.