Earth's Natural Resources

• Natural resources are materials taken from nature for sustenance, including air, water, soil, minerals, coal, petroleum, animals, and plants.
• They sustain life, provide for human needs, and compose the atmosphere, hydrosphere, and lithosphere.

Earth's Natural Resources

• Air: This is the atmosphere which contains essential gases like oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon dioxide.
• Water: The hydrosphere covers about 75% of Earth and includes water vapor in the atmosphere, saline water in seas and oceans, and freshwater in ice caps, mountains, underground sources, rivers, lakes, and ponds.
• Land: The lithosphere contains various soils needed for plant growth, vitamins, and minerals.
• Biosphere: This zone is where the lithosphere, atmosphere, and hydrosphere intersect, sustaining life

Problems with Natural Resources

• Natural resources are not unlimited, so careless use can lead to consequences such as:
• Deforestation: This involves clearing forests for non-forest use.
• Desertification: Land degradation in drylands leads to reduced biological productivity.
  • Sand and dust storms are increased due to desertification.
  • Food security is threatened globally by desertification and overpopulation.
• Soil erosion: This is the displacement of the upper soil layer.
• Forced migration: Involuntary movement of people from their homes due to various factors.
• Metal and mineral depletion is accelerated with overpopulation increasing demand.

Classification of Resources

• Renewable resources can be replenished naturally over time.
  • Solar energy, hydro-energy, air, water, Wind.
• Non-renewable resources are finite and cannot be renewed quickly.
  • Coal, natural gas, fossil fuels, petroleum, nuclear energy.

Renewable Resources

• Solar Energy: The sun is a big source of energy.
  • Solar energy usage includes cooking, heating, water, lighting streets, and irrigating fields.
• Hydro-Energy: Water flow in rivers or dams is important for hydro energy.
• Wind Energy: A windmill produces electrical energy for grinding grain, pumping water, and generating electricity.
• Biogas: This is obtained from decomposing animal and plant waste with microorganisms in water.
• Wood: Wood is used for cooking, but causes deforestation and air pollution.
• Hydrogen: This is a good, non-polluting energy source.
• Alcohol: This inexpensive source is mixed with petrol as fuel in automobiles, known as 'Gasohol'.
• Soil: This is the soil where plants grow to yield food.

Advantages of Renewable Resources

• There is sustainable, long-term availability.
• Lower environmental impacts and reduced greenhouse gas emissions result.
• Dependency on fossil fuels is reduced.
• Climate conservation is contributed to, and air pollution is reduced.
• Support is provided for a greener, more sustainable future.

Disadvantages of Renewable Resources

• High initial investments are required for infrastructure and equipment.
• Large-scale projects need significant land and space.
• Some sources depend on weather conditions.
• There is limited energy density compared to some non-renewable resources.

Non-Renewable Resources

• Fossil fuels, like coal and petroleum, are found deep in the earth and take thousands of years to renew.
• Coal, also known as black diamond, is used as a fuel to generate electricity and in factories/steam engines.
• Natural gas is used as a fuel called Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), which burns easily and produces a lot of heat.
  • Natural gases present a good alternative to petrol and diesel
• Petroleum is known as mineral or crude oil and is extracted from deep inside Earth or under the sea floor Nuclear energy uses uranium and doesn't release carbon dioxide, deeming it environmentally safe.

Advantages of Non-Renewable Resources

• They provide a reliable and consistent energy supply.
• They support industrialization and economic development.
• Non-renewables are valuable raw materials for various industries.
• There is well-developed infrastructure and distribution networks.
• Established markets and economic systems are in place.

Disadvantages of Non-Renewable Resources

• Reserves are finite and depleting, leading to resource scarcity.
• They cause environmental pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.
• They contribute to climate change and global warming.
• The extraction of non-renewables can cause habitat destruction and ecological damage.
• Resources are unsustainable and non-renewable.

Renewable vs. Non-Renewable Resources

• Depletion or exhaustion: Renewable resources do not deplete with continuous consumption, but non-renewable resources do.
• Examples: Renewable resources include sunlight, wind, water, and vegetation while non-renewable resources include mineral ores and fossil fuels like coal and petroleum.
• Environmental impact: Renewable resources emit low carbon, while non-renewable emit comparatively higher carbon.
• Cost: Renewable energy requires high initial costs, whereas non-renewable energy has low initial costs.
• Area: Renewable energy requires a huge area, while non-renewable requires a smaller area.

Forest Resources

• Forests provide oxygen ,timber, fuel wood, fodder, fibre, fruits, herbal drugs, cosmetics, raw materials, and habitats for various mammals and birds

Economic Significance of forrest resources

• Forests provide goods and services, including food, fodder, and products such as tannins, gums, spices, waxes, honey, musk, and hides.

Ecological Significance of forrest resources

• Global climate moderation: Forests stabilize global climate by influencing hydrological and carbon cycles.
• Oxygen production: Photosynthesis produces oxygen, reducing global warming.
• Biodiversity protection: Forests provide conditions for the survival and growth of organisms.
• Soil erosion prevention: Forests prevent wind/water action, preserving fertile topsoil.
• Landslide and cyclone prevention: Forests prevent landslides and reduce the intensity of cyclones/floods.

Socio-cultural significance

• Forests are part of social and cultural ethos.

Deforestation

• Deforestation results from natural and human activities that remove forest resources.

Causes of Deforestation:

• Developmental projects: Big dams, hydroelectric projects, road construction, etc. lead to deforestation.
• Mining operations: Reduce forest areas, extracting mica, coal, manganese, and limestone.
• Fuel requirement: It utilizes wood, especially for rural and tribal populations.
• Shifting cultivation: Destroys acres of forest.
• Forest fires: Destroys forest land.
• Overgrazing: Reduces cultivation land.

Consequences of Deforestation

• There are economic losses.
• Biodiversity decreases.
• Habitats of species are destroyed.
• Global warming increases.
• Weather patterns and global climate are disrupted.
• Soil degrades, accelerating soil erosion.
• Mass movement/landslides are induced.
• Flood frequency increases.
• The water cycle and nutrient cycle is broken.

Forest Resource Conservation

• Planting the same variety of new plants replaces cut-down trees for timber.
• Development of alternative fuel sources and their promotion is key.
• Modern techniques can control forest fires.
• Gov must discourage immigration.
• Education and awareness programs should be conducted on importance and preservation.
• Forest conservation act enforcement must be strict.
• Promoting agro-forestry enhances the role of rural people.

Forms of Water

• Water Vapour is found in the atmosphere
• Saline Water is found in seas and oceans
• Freshwater is found in frozen ice caps, snow-covered mountains, underground, rivers, lakes and ponds

Water Sources

• Oceans and Salt Lakes constitute 97.41% of total water.
• Ice Caps and Glaciers comprise 1.984% and Ground water 0.592%,
• Lakes 0.007%, Rivers 0.0001%

Necessity for life

• Water regulates body temperature, prevents tissue dryness, helps digestion, removes waste, and is required for photosynthesis.

Water Scarcity

• Water resources varies in availability over space and time, and can be caused by over-exploitation and excessive use

Need for Conservation and Management:

• It safeguards against health hazards.
• It ensures food security, continuity of livelihoods, and supports productive activities.
• Its prevents natural ecosystem degradation.

Problems with water resources

• Water Scarcity: A shortage of water reflects an imbalance between supply and demand.
• Industrial and domestic discharge of waste water pollutes, harming humans and ecosystems.
• Floods occur when water flow exceeds channel capacity.
• Over-exploitation of groundwater from domestic, industrial, or agricultural practices.

Causes of Water Scarcity:

• Climate Change: Deforestation contributes to a rise in temperature, leading to water scarcity.
• Water Waste: Inefficient water usage.
• Lack of Infrastructure: Hinders water distribution.
• Overconsumption: Excessive use from leakages and overuse.
• Population Increase: Raises demand beyond supply
• Industrialization and Urbanization: Increases water consumption.

Causes of Floods:

• Increased run-off from deforestation, overgrazing, and mining.
• Heavy Rainfall or Sudden Dam Release: Can cause floods in low-lying areas.

Causes of Droughts:

• Drought occurs when annual rainfall is below normal and less than evaporation.
• High population leads to poor land use and water shortage
• Intensive agriculture and over-exploitation of resources by digging wells depletes sources too quickly
• Deforestation leads to desertification and drought.

Effects of Droughts:

• Drought causes hunger, malnutrition, and scarcity of drinking water and also degrades drinking water.
• Widespread crop failures occur, leading to shortage of food that affects humans and livestock.
• Drought indicates desertification.
• Agro-based industries are impacted critically, affecting trade and commerce.
• Degradation of natural resources accelerate.
• Large-scale migration to urban areas creates slums.

Water Conservation Methods:

• Protect water from pollution by preventing waste disposal in important sources, treating industrial water, and prohibiting activities near water sources.
• Renovate traditional water sources for agriculture and drinking .
• Harvest rainwater by collecting it from roofs using PVC pipes into storage tanks.
• Practice efficient irrigation using controllers.
• Use drip irrigation to provide water and nutrients directly to plant roots.
• Dry farming does not rely on irrigation during crop production.

Mineral Resources

• Minerals are naturally occurring elements/compounds formed through inorganic processes under the earth’s crust

Types of Minerals include:

• Metallic Minerals: Metals are obtained (e.g., iron, copper, gold)
• Non-Metallic Minerals: Used naturally (e.g., limestone, mica, gypsum, salt)
• Fuel Minerals: Used as fuel (e.g., coal, petroleum, natural gas)

Metallic Minerals

• Exhibit a metallic shine.
• A metal source that can be extracted through mining.
• Contain metals in their chemical composition or raw form.

Nonmetallic Mineral Characteristics:

• They appear with non-metallic shine/luster and do not contain extractable metals within their makeup

Issues related Mineral resources

• Over-exploitation of mineral resources can have negative environmental impacts.
• Mining mineral resources can result in habitat destruction, deforestation, soil erosion, and water pollution.
• Health hazards from mining and processing can release toxic substances and dust particles, causing illnesses.
• Exploitation may result in social conflict over land, rights, compensation, and environmental impacts.

Sustainable practices to use/exploit mineral resources

• There is recycling of metals and materials that reduces the need to extract new resources.
• Responsible mining practices adopted by mining companies reduces waste and environmental impact.
• Government policies and regulations ensure the sustainable use of mineral resources.

Macro and trace mineral uses

• Macronutrients are about 60-80% of the body's inorganic material.
  • Important examples are Magnesium, Phosphorous, Potassium, Calcium, Sodium, Chloride and Sulphur. These are required in amounts greater than 100mg/day.

Micronutrients:

• Micronutrients are required in living tissues in minute quantities.
• Essential trace elements: (Copper, Iron. Manganese, Iodine, Molybdenum, Zinc, Cobalt, Selenium,Fluorine and Chromium.)
• Possibly essential trace elements: (Vanadium, Nickel, Barium and Cadmium)
• Non-essential trace elements (Lead, Aluminium, Boron, Silver, Mercury, Bismuth)

Land Resources

• finite and subject to urbanisation, infrastructure and production pressures.

Land Degradation

• Physical: Erosion, soil carbon loss, change in soil structure.
• Chemical: Leaching, salinization, fertility depletion, acidification.
• Biological: Loss of vegetation, biodiversity, and soil organic matter.

Problems related to earth resources

• Over irrigation and fertilizers causes farmland to become unproductive.
• Topsoil is carried away by wind and water causing soil erosion.

Causes of Earth Resource Degradation and desertification

• Overgrazing, deforestation, careless forest management, farming
• Urbanisation, industrialisation and mining growth
• Earthquake, tsunami, drought, avalanche, flood etc
• Population increase and poor irrigation managment

Food Resources:

• Food resources available to humans include livestock, fish, agricultural crops and wild plants/animals
• Use/management have significant environmental, social and economic (ESE) impact

Sustainable Food

• Farming: Crop rotation, integrated pest management, organic practices.
• Fishing: Seasonal closure, selective fishing for sustainability.
• Conservation: Protection/conservation of biodiversity to sustain resources.
• Climate mitigation
• Waste reduction: Sustainable food production reduces pressure.

Food Resources: Key problems

• Food waste is contributing to malnutrition and environmental effects
• Loss in yield of crop output due to soil infertility

Consequences Climate change

• This affects food production/distribution by changing weather and events, and reducing water.

Energy resources

• Resources - materials/elements for producing energy.
• Renewable resources that include solar, wind, hydro are renewable and can be replenished on a short term.
• Non-Renewable resources are exhaustible (e.g., fossil fuels, uranium, plutonium). Fossil fuels are include coal, oil etc.
• Coal: A rock-like substance used for heat/electricity generation.
• Natural gas: A colorless, odorless gas made of methane.
• Petroleum: It is a hydrocarbon mixture refined into gasoline/diesel.

Nuclear Energy:

• Nuclear energy is a zero-emission one produced from splitting uranium atoms.
• It requires safety precautions for handling/disposing of radioactive waste.

Solar Energy:

• Renewable that comes from the suns rays and converted mostly by panels.

Solar Cells:

• Solar cells converts radiating light and heat from the sun into other forms of energy, typically semiconductor materials like silicon.
• Solar panels do not emit harmful CO2 or have noise pollution, they are accessible in remote locations, easy to setup, and renewable.
• Operation/maintenance costs are very low/economically feasible.
• The performance depends on weather and they are difficult/inefficient to long range carry and fragile.

Wind energy

• Utilize the power of the wind using wine turbines.
• Clean in that is doesn't emit greenhouse gasses to generate electricity.
• They are a low cost type energy cause power is renewable, and also generate alternative energy.
• Wind turbines are dangerous to wildlife, noisy, cost infrastructure and is limited due to location/weather conditions.

Hydroelectric Energy

• Hydroelectric utilizes moving water from reservoirs, being a very reliable source.

Environmental Impacts

• Sources of energy have impacts regarding water water pollution, deforestation etc Role of Individual in natural resources conservation:
• individuals have a carbon footprint (amount of greenhouse gases they produce).

Can initiative role by:

• Reducing energy consumption.
• Conserving water: Repair leaks, and harvest Rain water etc
• Reducing waste: Recycle waste materials.
• Sustainable transport use.
• Sustainable business support.

Conservation of Forest:

• Use limited timber, minimize paper/fuel, grass control, and limit construction.

Conservation of Soil:

• Develop different types of plants etc is important.

Environment (Protection) Act, 1986

• This provides protection and improvement of the environment through the empowering measures enforced by the Central Government
• The Central Government has the power for enforcing/coordinating with State Government and measures to improving the environment etc
• It does enforce restriction on pollutant discharge.
• It ensures with procedural safeguards/ Powers of Entry and inspection. Penalties apply for Offences.

Illegal Wildlife Trade:

• There has been a significant increase in, being a major threat.
• It needs more coordination between forest and other government agencies/Community,