IB ESS HL 7.2.3 Energy Source Sustainability Questions

The following guide for using the markbands suggests certain features that may be offered in responses. The five headings coincide with the criteria given in each of the markbands (although "ESS terminology" has been conflated with "Understanding concepts"). This guide simply provides some possible inclusions and should not be seen as requisite or comprehensive. It outlines the kind of elements to look for when deciding on the appropriate markband and the specific mark within that band.

Answers may include:
- understanding concepts and terminology of human population growth, limiting factors, "limits to growth", renewable/non-renewable energy, sustainable development;
natural capital/income, carrying capacity, ecological footprints, energy choice, energy security, impacts of climate change, air, water pollution, soil degradation on food production/water availability/disease, etc, predictive models on growth and resource availability;
- breadth in addressing and linking longevity/sustainability of a range of energy sources with human population growth and a range of impacts of energy production from extraction to transportation to infrastructure with a range of limits to human population growth, etc;
- examples of non-renewable energy sources eg oil, coal, fracking, natural gas, nuclear, etc and renewable sources eg hydropower, geothermal, wind, wave, tidal, etc and impacts of energy production eg climate change/shifting biomes/agricultural conditions/food production/water availability/scarcity/disease and possible limits to growth eg pollution, disease, potable water, arable land, food, etc;
- balanced analysis of likelihood of energy itself becoming a limiting factor to human population growth compared to a variety of limiting factors resulting from energy production, including counter arguments (possible sustainability of energy choices), etc;
- a conclusion that is consistent with, and supported by, analysis and examples given eg "despite the development of sustainable energy that would prevent energy itself becoming a limiting factor, countries still persisting in their dependence on fossil fuels may well impair the availability of food and water and spread of disease, each of which could soon become a limiting factor to the growth of human populations";

Please see markbands on page 17.