Fossil Fuels
Our state has large deposits of resources
that aremined or pumped from the earth.
These natural resources are coal, natural
gas, and petroleum. Because they were
formedmillions of years ago under
the earth’s crust from the remains
of plants and animals, these resources
are called
fossil fuels
.
Almost one-third of our state has
deposits of coal under the ground.
There are twomajor types of coal–hard
coal, also known as
anthracite
, and
soft coal, also known as
bituminous
.
Pennsylvania is the 4th largest
producer of coal in the United States.
Our state is the only place in the
country where anthracite ismined. Most of the
anthracite coal is located in the northeastern part
of Pennsylvania. Miners in Schuylkill County produce
themost anthracite. The advantages of hard coal
are that it burnsmore slowly and produces less
pollution. It is usedmainly to heat homes and buildings.
Most of the western part of our state contains
massive reserves of bituminous coal. Scientists
think there is enough soft coal under Pennsylvania to
meet the fuel needs of our country for several
hundred years. Miners in Indiana and Greene
counties produce the greatest amount of soft coal.
Bituminous coal, which gives off more pollution when
burned, is usedmainly to produce steel and
electricity. Recent technological advances have
greatly reduced pollution caused by coal usage.
There aremore than 20 counties in the western
part of our state where
natural gas
is produced.
With thousands of wells, Pennsylvania is a leading
producer of natural gas. Natural gas is a very
important source of heating for homes and
businesses. It has some distinct advantages over
coal. Natural gas is very efficient, easy to use, and
creates less pollution.
In themid-1800s,
petroleum
was found inmore
than 23 counties within our state. Between 1859
and 1890, Pennsylvania was a leading producer of
petroleum in the United States. However, today we
only produce about one percent (1%) of our nation’s
oil supply. Most of our petroleum is very high quality.
This oil is used tomake products that lubricate
engines and other machinery. Two well known
brands of motor oil are Quaker State and Pennzoil.
Our state’s demand for petroleum far exceeds our
output. Most petroleumused in Pennsylvania comes
fromsouthwest Asian countries, such as Saudi Arabia
and Kuwait. This oil needs to be refined in order to
create different products. The port of Philadelphia is
amajor oil refining center. Much of our country’s oil
imports flow through these refineries.
This giant piece of coal, displayed at the town square in Jim
Thorpe, is fromamammoth anthracite coal veinmined in
the Panther Valley coal mining region of Pennsylvania.
Oil refineries process oil in its crude form into products
like gasoline, kerosene, and heating oil.
Natural Resources of Pennsylvania
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