Natural resources

Natural resources

1. What are Natural Resource?

   • They exist in nature and are the basis of life on earth.
     • Every item in your home is produced from a raw material that came from a natural resource.
     • Natural resources come in many forms. They may be solids, liquids, or gasses. They may also be organic or inorganic.
     • Natural resources can be consumed directly or indirectly.
     • No human created them. We tap into their supply to survive and also to function properly
     • If one part was taken away, it would affect the supply or quality of all others.

2. Types of Natural Resources

   • Natural resources fall under two main categories: Renewable and Non-renewable Resources.
     • Renewable resources
       • Renewable resources are those that are regularly available (like water) or can be reasonably replaced or recovered, like vegetative lands.
       • Renewable resources that come from non-living things such as water, sun, and wind can be called inorganic renewable resources.
       • Renewable resources that come from living things such as trees and animals can be called organic renewable resources.
     • Non-renewable Resources
       • Non-renewable resources are those that cannot be replaced once they are destroyed.
       • Minerals are also non-renewable because even though they form naturally in a process called the rock cycle, it can take thousands of years.
       • Some animals can be considered non-renewable because if people hunt for a particular species without ensuring their reproduction, they will be extinct.
       • Non-renewable resources can be called inorganic resources if they come from non-living things.
       • Some non-renewable resources come from living things — such as fossil fuels. They can be called organic non-renewable resources.

3. Threats to Natural Resources

   • There are 3 main threats to Natural Resources: Overpopulation, Climate change, and Environmental Pollution
     • Overpopulation
       • This is probably the most significant, single threat that natural resources face.
         • Land Use
           • With more mouths to feed and people to provide homes for, more land will need to be cultivated and developed for housing.
         • Forests
           • Demand for wood (timber), food, roads, and forest products will be more.
         • Fishing
           • The freshwater and seafood sector will face problems too as we will continue to depend heavily on them.
     • Climate Change
       • The alteration in climate patterns as a result of excessive anthropogenic is hurting biodiversity and many other abiotic natural resources.
     • Environmental Pollution
       • Land, water, and air pollution directly affect the health of the environments in which they occur.

4. Role of Natural Resources

   • Natural resources are available to sustain the very complex interaction between living things and non-living things. Humans also benefit immensely from this interaction.
     • Developed countries consume more resources than under-developed countries
     • A person in Europe consumes about 36kg of natural resources per day; a person in North America consumes about 90kg per day, a person in Asia consumes about 14kg, and a person in Africa consumes about 10kg of resources per day.
     • We can also find food and drink, it includes agricultural products as well as naturally occurring foods such as fish from freshwater and seas, seeds and nuts, medicines, herbs, and plants.
     • We can find mobility, that includes automobiles, trains, water vessels, airplanes, together with all the fuel that powers them.
     • Finally we have housing and infraestructure. There houses, public places, and roads would be constructed. But it also would consume lots of energy and other resources.

5. Problems of naturas resources

   • Even though natural resources are the support structures of life, too much or too little of it can come with a lot of trouble and conflict.
     • Too little natural resources
       • In many regions of the world, a mix of limited resources, overpopulation, and environmental degradation has produced extreme poverty and income inequality.
     • Too much natural resources
       • This problem is even more in regions with excess natural resources
       • Greed, corruption, and conflict from revenue distribution, resource ownership, decision making, management, and access have fuelled local and international conflict.

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