NATURAL RESOURCES

Unit-1
Part - II

Lecture-1(Topic: Natural Resources)

Objective of the lecture
 To Recognize the Natural Resources.
 To know the importance of Natural Resources.
NATURAL RESOURCES

Definition:
Life on this planet earth depends upon a large number of things
and services provided by the nature, which are known as Natural
resources.
Classification of natural resources based on life

Biotic: Those having life;

eg: Plants, Animals

Abiotic: Those having no life;

eg: Air, water, soil, climate, minerals, sun light etc

Thus water, air, soil, minerals, coal, forests, crops and

wild life are all examples of natural resources.

 Other types of natural resources in and around Earth:

 1. Atmosphere:

It is the zone which provides oxygen for humans and animals and it a

part of CO2 for plants.

a. Troposphere: Only part warm enough to survive in with a

thickness of 12 Kms.
b. Stratosphere: It is of 50 Kms thickness. It contains a layer of

sulfates which is important for formation of rains. It also contains a

layer of Ozone which absorbs UV rays.
 2. Hydrosphere:

It is the house of water, which is used for various human needs.

3/4th of Earth is covered by water

 Clean water for drinking (a metabolic requirement for living

processes).

 Water for washing and cooking.

 Water used in agriculture and industry.

 Food resources from the sea, including fish

 Food from fresh water sources, including fish, and aquatic

plants. Hydrosphere only.

3. Lithosphere:
It is the source of soil and is base for agriculture. A large
number of minerals are found here. Of 92 minerals
available 8 major minerals are Si, Al, Fe, Na, Mg, K, and Ca
Soil, the basis for agriculture to provide us with food.
Stone, sand and gravel, used for construction.
Micronutrients in soil, essential for plant growth.
Oil, coal and gas, extracted from underground sources.
It provides power for vehicles, agricultural machinery,
industry, and for our homes.
 4. Biosphere:
It is the thin shell that encapsulates the earth. It is made up of
Atmosphere, Hydrosphere and Lithosphere. It is within
Biosphere, all forms of life exist. The life sustaining resources
like air, water and food are withdrawn from Biosphere and
cycled through Biosphere. Food for all living things is available
here.
 Food, from crops and domestic animals, providing human metabolic
requirements.
Food, for all forms of life which live as interdependent
species in a community and form food chains in nature on which
man is dependent.
 Energy needs: Biomass fuel wood collected from forests and
plantations, along with other forms of organic matter, used as a
source of energy.
Classification of natural resources based on value:

(i) Forest resources

(ii) Water resources
(iii) Mineral resources
(iv) Food resources
(v) Energy resources
(vi) Land resources
Classification of natural resources based on usage and
availability:
 Renewable resources: The resources which are
inexhaustive and can be regenerated within a given span
of time.
 Eg. forests, wildlife, wind energy, biomass energy, tidal
energy, hydro power etc. Solar energy is also a renewable
form of energy as it is an inexhaustible source of energy.

 Non-renewable resources: The resources which cannot

be regenerated.
 Eg. Fossil fuels like coal, petroleum, minerals etc. Once
we exhaust these reserves, the same cannot be
replenished.
Natural Resources and associated problems:
 The unequal consumption of natural resources:
A major part of natural resources are today consumed in the
technologically advanced or ‘developed’ world, usually
termed ‘the North’.
The ‘developing nations’ of ‘the South’, including India and
China, also over use many resources because of their greater
human population.
However, the consumption of resources per capita (per
individual) of the developed countries is up to 50 times
greater than in most developing countries. Advanced
countries produce over 75% of global industrial waste and
greenhouse gases.
The quality of ecological system will deteriorate without
the sustainable use of natural resources.
The need for sustainable lifestyles:
 The quality of human life and the quality of ecosystems on earth
are indicators of the sustainable use of resources.
 There are clear indicators of sustainable lifestyles in human life.
 Increased longevity
 An increase in knowledge
 An enhancement of income.
 These three together are known as the ‘Human development
index’.
 The quality of the ecosystems have indicators that are more
difficult to assess.
 A stabilized population.
 The long term conservation of biodiversity.
 The careful long-term use of natural resources.
 The prevention of degradation and pollution of the environment.
Forest resources
 Forest Resources
 Use and overexploitation:
 Scientists estimate that India should ideally have 33 percent
of its land under forests.
 Today we have only about 24.39 percent. Thus we need not
only to protect existing forests but also to increase our
forest cover.
 Forests once extended over large tracts of our country.
 People have used forests in our country for thousands of
years.
 As agriculture spread the forests were left in patches which
were controlled mostly by tribal people.
 They hunted animals and gathered plants and lived entirely
on forest resources.
Contd...
 Deforestation became a major concern in British times when
a large amount of timber was extracted for building their
ships.
 This led the British to develop scientific forestry in India.
 This led to a loss of stake in the conservation of the forests
which led to a gradual degradation and fragmentation of
forests across the length and breadth of the country.
 Another period of over utilization and forest degradation
occurred in the early period following independence as
people felt that now that the British had gone they had a right
to using our forests in any way we pleased.
FOREST FUNCTIONS
 Watershed protection:
 Reduce the rate of surface run-off of water.
 Prevent flash floods and soil erosion.
 Produces prolonged gradual run-off and thus prevent effects of
drought.
 Atmospheric regulation:
 Absorption of solar heat during evapo-transpiration.
 Maintaining carbon dioxide levels for plant growth.
 Maintaining the local climatic conditions.
 Erosion control:
 Holding soil (by preventing rain from directly washing soil away).
 Land bank:
 Maintenance of soil nutrients and structure.
 Local use - Consumption of forest produce by local people who
collect it for subsistence –(Consumptive use)
 Food - gathering plants, fishing, hunting from the forest.(In the past
when wildlife was plentiful, people could hunt and kill animals for
food. Now that populations of most wildlife species have diminished,
continued hunting would lead to extinction.)
 Fodder - for cattle.
 Fuel wood and charcoal for cooking, heating.
 Poles - building homes especially in rural and wilderness areas.
 Timber – household articles and construction.
 Fiber - weaving of baskets, ropes, nets, string, etc.
 Sericulture – for silk.
Contd...
 Market use - (Productive use)

 Most of the above products used for consumptive purposes

are also sold as a source of income for supporting the

livelihoods of forest dwelling people.

 Minor forest produce - (non-wood products): Fuelwood,

fruit, gum, fiber, etc. which are collected and sold in local
markets as a source of income for forest dwellers.
 Source: Wikipedia Forest area
Rank Country
(km2)
1 Russia 8,149,300
2 Canada 4,916,438
3 Brazil 4,776,980
4 United States 3,100,950
5 China 2,083,210
6 Australia 1,250,000
Democratic Republic of the
7 1,172,704
Congo
8 Argentina 945,336
9 Indonesia 884,950
10 India 802,088
 Deforestation
• Itis defined as the reckless falling of trees by human beings for their
ulterior ends.
• The rate of deforestation is approximately 1.7 crore hectares annually
worldwide.

Causes of Deforestation:
 Shifting cultivation
 Fuel requirements
 Raw Material for industrial use
 Development of projects
 Growing food needs
 Overgrazing
 Development of agro-business
 Mining Activities
CAUSES OF DEFORESTATION
 Shifting Cultivation
 300 million people living as shifting cultivators.
 5 lakh ha of forests cleared annually.
 Fuel Requirements
 Increase in fuel wood requirement
o 1945 – 65 million tons
o 2001 – 300-500 million tons
 Raw Materials for Industrial Use
 wood for making boxes, furniture, railway sleepers, plywood…
 Pulp for paper industry.
 Development Projects
 Hydroelectric power projects, Big dams, Roads, Mining…
 Growing Food Needs
 Creation of agricultural land and settlements by clearing forests.
 Overgrazing
CONSEQUENCES OF DEFORESTATION
 It threatens the existence of many wild life species due to
destruction of their natural habitat.
 Biodiversity is lost.
 Hydrological cycle gets affected, thereby influencing
rainfalls.
 Problems of soil erosion and loss of soil fertility increases.
 In hilly areas it often leads to landslides.
Major Activities in Forests
 Timber Extraction
 Mining
 Dams and River valley projects effect on forests and tribal people

Effects of Timber Extraction:

 Poor logging results in a degraded forest
 Soil erosion, especially on slopes
 Sedimentation of irrigation systems
 Floods may be intensified on upstream watershed
 Loss of Biodiversity
 Climate changes such as lower precipitation
 Exploitation of tribal people by contractors
 Loss of long term forest productivity
How to conserve forests?
Case study (Joint forest management-JFM)
 Importance is given to local communities in Forest Management.
 Under JFM schemes, Forest Protection Committees are formed
from local community members only.
 The Local people were given some economic benefit to involve
them in conservation.
 Initially informal collaboration of local communities and the Forest
Department began in 1972, in Midnapore District of West Bengal.
 Later JFM has evolved into a formal agreement which identifies and
respects the local community’s rights and benefits that they need
from forest resources.
 They participate in restoring green cover and protect the area from
being over-exploited.
Reference
Text Book:
 Bharucha, E., Textbook of Environmental Studies, Universities
Press.