This document discusses Earth's natural resources. It defines resources as anything organisms use from the environment, categorizing them as renewable or non-renewable. Earth's main natural resources are discussed as atmospheric (air, wind, temperature), lithospheric (soil, minerals, rocks), hydrospheric (water in oceans, rivers, lakes), and biospheric (plants, animals). Atmospheric resources like air and solar energy are essential to life. Lithospheric resources include soil, minerals extracted for usage, and building materials. Hydrospheric resources encompass water in oceans, rivers, lakes used for life, agriculture and industry. Biospheric resources are plants and animals providing food, medicines and more.

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EARTH'S NATURAL RESOURCES
By
Prof. A. Balasubramanian
CENTRE FOR ADVANCED STUDIES IN EARTH SCIENCE
UNIVERSITY OF MYSORE
MYSORE-6

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Introduction:
The environment includes all biotic and
abiotic factors that affect the life of an
organism or a plant or human beings. All
life on earth needs food and energy for
survival, growth and reproduction.
Energy is a basic requirement for growth,
based on which the biomass is produced.

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The growth of vegetation needs fertile soil,
essential nutrients, water and sunlight.
Human life requires air, food, water and
other materials for shelter, transport and
varieties of socio-economic and life-support
activities.
Most of the required materials are available
in raw or convertible forms on earth. These
are the natural resources of the planet earth.

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In this episode, the following modules are
discussed:
1. Definition and types of resources
2. Earth’s Atmospheric natural resources
3. Earth’s Lithospheric natural resources-
4. Earth’s Hydrospheric natural Resources
5. Earth’s Bisospheric Natural resources

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1. Definition and types of resources
A resource is anything that an organism uses
and consumes from the environment.
Some resources are directly available for
use, while the other resources must be
extracted at some cost to the organism.

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Normally, the extraction of a resource by an
organism has an effect on the environment.
The type of effect which is negative versus
positive and its magnitude is determined by
a number of factors.
In human societies, cultural beliefs can
determine what is classified as a resource.

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Current human societies on the Earth use
many non-essential resources in their daily
lives.
Resources are to be used only for essential
activities, since they have a value in life.
Resources are classified into many types.
Throughout human time scale, resources like
Solar energy, wind energy and tidal energy
are expected to be available.

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These are virtually inexhaustible resources
for human consumption.
Such types are called as perpetual resources.
We can say that these are the everlasting
resources of the earth.
Whereas, coal, oil and mineral deposits are
non-renewable or exhaustible resources.

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Once used such materials will not come
back again.
These are available in a fixed amount.
Out of which, some nonrenewable resources
can be recycled or reused to meet certain
requirements.
A renewable resource is one that is available
over a period of time and space. These can
be used and produced by human
involvement.

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Even if they are depleted in the short run
they can be replaced through natural
processes.
Forest wealth, marine food, energy for
water, wind, biogas, timber, herbs and cattle
are all considered to be under this category.
One can use these resources under an
optimum level.
Over use of these may create shortage.
Over production may increase pollution on
the environment.

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The highest rate at which a renewable
resource can be used without decreasing its
potential for renewal is called its sustained
yield.
Exceeding the sustained yield can cause a
resource to become nonrenewable or
nonexistent. This will induce a resource
crunch and depletion. This is called as
environmental degradation.

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Typical examples are:
a) Oil crisis due to shortage of oil resources
b) Fuel for domestic use, due to shortage of
coal and natural gas
c) Over grazing of land and its impact on
cattle population
d) The reduction in the nutrient level of soils
due to intense agricultural production
e) Over-exploitation of groundwater and
declining water tables in aquifers

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The Concept of Carrying Capacity
The population size of most organisms is
usually controlled by the availability of a
few key resources that limit its ability to
survive and reproduce. When resources are
abundant, the population of the species grow
without damage.
When population grows, the demand
supersedes the supply.

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If the resources are over-consumed, the
population of the species will experience a
decline census and resource crunch. The
scarcity of resources leads to starvation and
death.
The population size of most species reaches
a steady state equilibrium that is defined by
the availability of the limiting resources in
its habitat. This equilibrium is also called the
carrying capacity.

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Human populations are also influenced by a
habitat's carrying capacity.
Earth’s natural resources are of several kinds
like land resources, soil resources, water
resources, forest resources, marine
resources, mineral resources, animals and
human resources.
These are in addition to the Solar radiation
and atmospheric wind.

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2. Earth’s Atmospheric natural resources
Air present in the atmosphere, is a mixture
of gases, smokes and dust.
Atmosphere contains 5000 million tones of
gases. Nitrogen amounts to 78%, oxygen to
21%, carbon-dioxide to 0.33% and argon to
0.93%.

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Almost all of these gases are needed in one
way or the other, for the life to survive and
to maintain the balance of these in the
atmosphere.
The water vapour present in the atmosphere
is a major contributor for condensation and
cloud formation.
It ultimately leads to precipitation.

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Of the eleven gases present in the
atmosphere, nitrogen, oxygen, water vapor,
carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and
ozone are extremely important to the health
of the Earth's biosphere.
Nitrogen and oxygen have very important
associations with life. The addition of
nitrogen to the Earth's surface soils and
various water bodies supplies much needed
nutrition for plant growth.

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Sun’s Solar radiation is a major source of
energy for all life support activities.
Air has to be in circulation for maintaining
an equilibrium. The distribution of heat in
the atmosphere is responsible for the
difference in pressure and also for the
movement of the air. Wind is a major agent
for a set of natural processes.

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It has the potential to help in producing wind
energy also. Trade winds are responsible for
the monsoons and the convection currents.
Weather and climatic depends on the flow
of winds.
Temperature of the atmosphere is a major
asset to the natural processes.
Some gases present in the atmosphere can
change the heating rates.

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The amount of moisture present in the air is
known as the humidity.
The more moisture there is in the air, the
higher is the humidity.
The humidity of the air depends on
temperature and location. Humidity controls
the weather conditions. Monsoons are
generated by the difference in the heating
and cooling of air over land and sea.

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The global hydrologic resources are
dependant on the atmospheric clouds.
Condesning clouds provide the much needed
rain and snow. Rainfall is the ultimate
source of all life on earth.
Global climate and atmospheric conditions
form the basis for monsoons.
Fresh air is a blessed gift of nature for every
life.

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When the air inside the house is warm and
polluted with smokes and dusts, people
come out of the house for breathing fresh
air. Human beings can never survive
without the air.
Hence, air is considered to be the primary
natural resource of life on earth.
Air will take on the shape of whatever thing
it gets a chance to go into.

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Air has weight. Air goes in and out of our
lungs every day.
The unique properties of air are used for
many industrial applications.
The compressibility, pressure and dynamics
of air are useful in running pistons, ginning
of soft and friable materials, cooling and
controlling equipment.
The movement of air as wind blow is also
used to dry objects and cleaning floors.

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3. Earth’s Lithospheric natural resources-
Land resources include all the terrestrial
ecosystems including mountains, forests,
grasslands, range lands, mangroves,
floodplains, meadows and deltas. Earth’s
lithosphere is the storehouse of various
rocks and innumerable mineral resources,
groundwater and fossil fuels.

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The Heat of the Earth’s interior is a good
source for geothermal energy.
Soil is the primary natural resource of the
ecosystems helpful to grow all vegetation.
Soil is the home for all microbes.
Soil fertility encourages agricultural
productivity.
Soils, their physical and chemical properties
are more helpful in many human activities.

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Soils are used for making bricks, pottery and
in earthen structures.
Productivity from agriculture depends on
soil resources.
Man has first started to use minerals and
rocks for his needs far back in ancient times.
Stone has played a large role in the primitive
society.

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The stone age man used stones and clays to
prepare things which were necessary for his
defense, hunting and household articles as
well as ornaments.
People used soil, mud and rocks for
construction.
Valuable metallic ores, non-metallic
substances and gemstones were identified
for various works.

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Aristotle was the first naturalist to classify
the stones.
Mining for copper, lead and silver began in
the sixth and seventh centuries.
Large mining enterprises were started during
the fifteenth century.
Utilization of mineral resources greatly
increased during the eighteenth century.

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Due to the progress in industrial growth
more and more natural resources are being
used in one way or the other.
Minerals are naturally occurring inorganic
substances having a set of definite physical
properties and chemical composition.
Many minerals are of very high practical
and economic value.

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They are classified into
A. Metallic Minerals which include both
ferrous and non-ferrous minerals.
B. Non-metallic minerals support on various
activities.
C. Atomic Minerals are helpful in
generating atomic energy and also in nuclear
studies.

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Extraction of various metals are done from
the ore minerals of metallic category.
Much of the minerals are used in many of
the industries today.
They are all classified as industrial minerals.
Minerals form the raw materials in many
industries.
They are the backbones of modern industrial
society and life.

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The list of minerals used in different
industries are:
1. Mineral Fuels like Coal, Petroleum and
Natural gas.
2. Refractories using Fire clay, Kaolin and
magnesite
3. Abrasives using diamond, corundum,
emery, garnet
4. Paints from Ochres and orpiments and
plasters from gypsum
5. Cement from Limestone and dolomites.

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6. Glass from Quartz and Feldspar
7. Ceramics from Kaolin (china clay) and
Feldspar
8. Insulators from asbestos, Mica and
Fire clay
9. Paper and pulp industries using Kaolin,
barite and gypsum
10. Optical and scientific instruments using
calcite, Fluorite, Gypsum, agate, Quartz,
mica and tourmaline.

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11. Radioactive minerals : Pitchblende,
monazite, etc.
Slates, Talc, asbestos, salt, mica and many
minerals are used directly or indirectly in
industries.
In addition to these, lithosphere contains a
good number of building and ornamental
stones.

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Rock type, color, Grain size, texture,
hardness, durability, porosity, density,
strength, sonic velocity and permeability are
the characteristics determining the suitability
of a stone (or) a rock for construction
purposes.
Granite family of rocks are available in
plenty in the region of India. They have
been used in the construction of most of the
temples and public edifies.

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Charnockite which is the black variety of
granite and dolerites exported to other
countries from India.
Sandstones of older geological formations
have been extensively used as a building
material in several regions. Limestone,
Marble, slates and laterite are the normal
building stones.

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Lithosphere contains a good number of
gemstones.
These are commercial valuable unique
natural resources of the globe.
Most of the jewelry works based on the
available native elements like gold, silver
and copper.

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Gemstones like Diamond, Garnet, Topaz,
Ruby, saphire corundum, Beryl, Olivine,
amethyst, Jasper, Tourmaline, Agate and
Emerald are the notable gem resources of
the globe.
India is fortunate to have some basic mineral
resources for its industries. India is
considered to be more or less self-contained
in mineral resources.

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The country is rich with iron and
manganese ores, along with bauxite, mica
and fossil fuels.
4. Earth’s Hydrospheric Natural
Resources
Hydrosphere is the sphere of water.
It encompasses the global water resources
and its distribution over the land,
atmosphere, and oceans.

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The water resources of the globe include,
the major oceans and seas,
glaciers and ice on mountains and polar
regions,.
Rivers and streams with their running water
Lakes, ponds and reservoirs
Groundwater and soil moisture
And the water vapour.
The major part of the global water is saline
and is present in the oceans.

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Fresh water is very limited and is found in
rivers and in lakes. The surface water
resources are mainly used for Drinking and
sanitation, Agriculture and irrigation,
domestic consumption, industrial processes,
power generation and water transport.
Groundwater resources are mainly used for
drinking, domestic consumption and
industrial applications when the surface
water is limited.

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Water plays many complex roles in human
activities and natural systems.
Freshwater is one of the most essential of
the elements that support human life and
economic growth and development.
It is irreplaceable for the purposes of
drinking, hygiene, food production,
fisheries, industry, hydropower generation,
navigation, recreation and many other
activities.

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Water is equally critical for the healthy
functioning of nature, upon which human
society is built.
The reality is that 97.5 per cent of all water
on Earth is salt water, leaving only 2.5 per
cent as freshwater.
Nearly 70 per cent of that freshwater is
frozen in the ice caps of Antarctica and
Greenland.

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The remainder is present as soil moisture, or
lies in deep underground aquifers as
groundwater not accessible to human use.
Much of the approximately 110,000 cubic
kilometres of precipitation that fall on the
continents each year evaporates back into
the atmosphere, or is absorbed by plants.

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About 42,700 cubic kilometres of the water
that falls on Earth flows through the world's
rivers.
Freshwater resources are very unevenly
distributed: at one extreme are the deserts,
where almost no rain falls, and at the other
are the most humid regions, which can
receive several metres of rainfall a year.

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The oceans and seas are the storehouses of
many naturally depositing substances and
marine life.
The ocean is the earth's water reservoir.
Oceans are the heat regulators, absorbing
more heat from the atmosphere than land.
Oceans play an important role in
determining the climate of an area.
The ocean provide many things to human
population and other life.

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It is far more than a place for swimming,
sailing and other recreation.
The ocean serves as a source of food,
energy, and minerals. Ships use the ocean to
carry cargo between continents.
Above all, the global climate is regulated by
the oceans If there were no oceans, life
could not have been in existence on the
planet earth.

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Every natural element can be found in the
waters of the ocean.
But the ocean is especially known for its
salts. Sea water contains about 35000 mg/L
of salts. Six elements account for 99 per
cent of the ocean's salinity (saltiness). They
are, in order of amount, chlorine, sodium,
sulphur (as sulphate), magnesium, calcium,
and potassium. Most of the salty material in
the sea consists of the compound sodium
chloride, or ordinary table salt.

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Oceans have enormous amounts of other
resources. They include:
(1) food,
(2) energy,
(3) minerals, and
(4) medicines.
A good amount of life thrives in the oceans.
An incredible variety of living things reside
within the ocean.

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Marine life ranges in size from microscopic
one-celled organisms to the blue whale,
which may measure up to 30 metres long.
Ocean plants and fishes and other sea
animals are the major resources.
Ocenas contains many natural mineral
substances like manganese nodules , oolites
and oozes.

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Under the freshwater resources, rivers,
reservoirs and lakes are of primary
importance.
The presence of large lakes in a region
greatly influences the lives of the people
living nearby.
Lakes affect weather conditions over a large
area. In summer, a lake never gets as warm
as the land that surrounds it.

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As a result, breezes blowing over the water
are cooled.
In winter, a lake does not cool off as fast as
the surrounding land, and may cause the
climate to be warmer. These water bodies
are good ecosystems and habitat for many
life. Irrigation, water supply and recreation
are the major applications of these natural
resources.
Rivers have been important to transportation
and trade for many centuries.

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They also serve as an important energy
source. Today, hydroelectricity meets about
a quarter of the world's electric power needs.
Groundwater is another natural resource
mainly derived from the rainfall that
percolates into the subsoil. It forms the
largest source of freshwater available over
the globe.
Groundwater is not uniformly distributed
throughout the earth's outer layer.

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Ground water is the source of water for
wells and many springs.
Bore wells are drilled down to aquifers to
draw ground water to the surface. The
unique features of groundwater is that it is
available everywhere.
Though it is less than 1% over globe, it
caters to the catering to the needs of 60 % of
world’s population.
Hydropshere is the major sphere supporting
life through its natural resources.

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5. Earth’s Biospheric Natural resources
The biosphere is made up of all that is living
on earth, from the smallest bacterium to the
largest whale.
It includes between 3 and 30 million species
of plants, animals, and fungi, bacteria, and
protozoans.

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The biosphere extends over the Earth's
surface in a thin layer from a few kilometers
into the atmosphere, in very cold
environments, to the deep-sea vents of the
ocean depths, in very hot environments.
The biosphere is a life-supporting global
ecosystem, where each living being
depends on each other and the environment.

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The ecosystem includes all living organisms
and the abiotic or nonliving environment on
which they depend for their energy and the
nutrients they need to live.
The natural resources of the biosphere
includes
The Forests
The Animal wealth and
The human resources.

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In addition to these, the raw materials and
produces from the activities like agriculture,
mariculture,
silviculture and aquaculture generate a huge
amount of food and other resources which
govern the life and economy of a country.
Forests and forest products are plenty of
natural resources for our use. Forest are the
gift of nature for human and animal life.

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They are the native homes and parks for
wildlife and sanctuaries for birds.
The primary and secondary resources of
forests have helped the population to sustain
for several centuries.
Forests have a variety of uses to humans,
including wood from trees, nutrition from
animals, for grazing, recreation, medicinal
and so on.
Timber and non-timber forest products are
essential materials for human use.

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Forests are air purifiers.
The complex ecological relationships
involving forests could allow humans to
benefit from them in a variety of ways.
Biomass, productivity of forests and the
biodiversity are the ultimate strengths of the
biosphere.

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Herbal medicines, animal extracts and food
items are the benefits of these resources.
All population thrives on the biospheric
reserves and resources. Farmers, Foresters
and fishermen are the major stakeholders of
many biospheric reserves.
Earth is the living planet containing a lot of
terrestrial, freshwater and marine species.

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Energy and biomass are the major factors in
the biosphere.
The natural resources of the biosphere
includes all species and populations of the
plant and animal kingdom.
Biogenic chemicals, plant and animal
extracts, herbs, fruits, nuts and roots of
plants are used in varieties of ways for
human needs.

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Though their availability is very limited, but
their usage is very essential.
Seeds and husks, ivory from elephants,
feathers of birds are valuable resources for
human use.
The natural resources of the Earth are not
uniformly distributed. The availability and
purpose of usage are also varied.

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Some are essential, strategic and critical
substances.
Some are rare items and precious
commodities.
Many of these may be renewable and non-
renewable resources. The non-renewable
resources are to be properly conserved by
the human beings.

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Conservation and management of natural
resources in the environment needs adequate
planning and analysis.