7.2.3—Energy source sustainability
- Syllabus
- First assessment 2026
- Objective
- 7.2.3
- Level
- HL
Judge the Whole Energy Life Cycle
Energy-source sustainability must be judged across extraction, processing, construction, operation, restoration and end-of-life—not only while electricity is generated.
| Source or material | Main lifecycle questions |
|---|---|
| Fossil fuels | mining or drilling, crude-oil refining, gas liquefaction, combustion emissions and site restoration |
| Rare-earth elements | finite mining and processing, pollution, recovery and recycling |
| Nuclear | uranium mining, reactor construction, low-carbon operation, radioactive waste and decommissioning |
| Solar | panel materials, land, transport, intermittent output, recycling and disposal |
| Wind | turbine materials, roads and grid links, intermittent output, dismantling and recycling |
Wind avoids fuel combustion during operation but still requires steel, concrete, transport and end-of-life management; environmental restoration may be required for both renewable and non-renewable systems.
Compare the same lifecycle stages, timescale and criteria before ranking sources.
Low operational emissions are not zero lifecycle impact, and one impact cannot stand in for total sustainability.