Environmental and Natural Disasters

• Environmental disasters are caused by people affecting their natural surroundings.
• Natural disasters are caused by nature.

Environmental Problems

• Environmental pollution: Using the environment as a place to dump waste.
• Environmental exhaustion: Depletion of natural resources.
• Environmental degradation: Human changes to nature and landscapes.

Types of Environmental Pollution

• Air pollution: Introduction of polluting gases into the atmosphere, often from burning fossil fuels, including carbon dioxide emissions.
• Acid rain: When acidic substances fall to the ground
• Water pollution: Discharge of toxic substances into surface water.
• Soil pollution: Contamination of the ground with harmful substances; cleaning polluted soil is called soil remediation.

Borders and States

• A state is a region with defined borders and its own government.
• Netherlands is a sovereign state managing its own affairs.
• A natural border follows a natural obstacle.
• An artificial border is marked by signs and boundary posts.
• Continental shelf: The area of shallow water around a continent that belongs to the country.

People, Culture and Nation

• A people is a group of humans sharing the same culture, having lived together for centuries.
• A nation is when a state consists of only one people, also known as a nation-state.
• Culture includes the beliefs and customs learned while growing up.
• Spatial planning elements can reflect culture.
• There are seven cultural regions worldwide with similar cultural elements.
• Diffusion: The spread of cultural elements from one region to another.

Economic Sectors

• Primary sector: Extraction of raw materials from nature (agriculture, fishing, mining).
• Secondary sector: Manufacturing; processing raw materials into finished products.
• Tertiary sector: Businesses providing services.

Means of Production

• Labour: Paid work producing goods or services in all sectors.
• Working population are those with paid work and those seeking work.
• Capital: Buildings, machinery, equipment, vehicles used for production.
• Natural resources: Elements from the natural environment needed for production.

Raw Materials

• Raw materials are used at the start of the production process.
• Unprocessed raw materials: Come directly from the primary sector.
• Minerals: Resources extracted from the earth through mining.
• Surface mining: Extracting minerals from the surface.
• Subsurface mining: Extracting minerals from underground.
• Semi-manufactured products: Products already processed by industries.

Service Sectors

• Commercial services: Part of the tertiary sector.
• Non-commercial services: Part of the quaternary sector, largely government-employed.

Service Sector Considerations

• Developed countries: Service sector employs about 75% of the workforce, with well-paid, highly educated workers.
• Developing countries: Service sector workers are often uneducated and low-paid.