Why are energy resources scarce?

* Overusage over the course of a hundred+ years.

* Companies forming monopolies over resources, allowing them to easily control the market and how much consumer demand is created.

* Simply too rare to find, or too difficult to extract, process, purify, etc.

* Expensive to find or research any alternative to the current choices.

a, c, & d are correct:

they wanted lands to settle the extra population.

they wanted new markets for english goods.

they wanted to avoid civil war.