When nature becomes a resource, and kinds by use
A tree in the forest just stands there. When a carpenter turns its wood into a chair, the tree becomes a resource for people.
Things in nature that people did not make, and that are useful to us, are called natural resources. A thing becomes a resource only if it is technologically accessible, economically feasible to take out and culturally acceptable.
Key idea 1: Three tests for a resource — Petroleum lying too deep for our machines is not yet a resource. Something whose cost is higher than its value, or something found in a sacred grove, may also fail the test. In this chapter, ‘exploitation’ simply means taking, using and consuming a resource.
- Easy: River water used for drinking is a natural resource.
- Medium: Coal in a mine that no machine can reach is not yet a resource, because it is not accessible.
- Exam-type: Cutting trees in a sacred grove may be possible and cheap, but it fails the ‘culturally acceptable’ test.
In the figure: Resources are grouped by use: essential for life, materials, and sources of energy.
Key idea 2: Grouping by use — Essential for life: air, water and soil, which we cannot make ourselves. Materials: wood, stone and metals that we shape into objects. Energy: coal, petroleum, natural gas, flowing water, sunlight and wind. One resource can have more than one use; water is essential for life and also gives energy.
A natural thing becomes a resource only when we can reach it, afford it and accept using it.
Thinking that everything in nature is already a resource. Many things cannot be used yet.
Three tests: Accessible, Economical, Culturally acceptable. Memory clue: A-E-C, like A-B-C with the E in the middle.
Spot the difference
| Kind | Examples | Main use |
|---|---|---|
| Essential for life | air, water, soil | survival |
| Materials | wood, marble, gold | making objects |
| Energy | coal, wind, sunlight | power and fuel |
Practice questions
- 1Define a natural resource.
- 2Name the three tests a natural thing must pass to become a resource.
- 3Name the three groups of resources by use.
- 4Why is petroleum lying far below the deep sea not yet a resource?
- 5Give two examples of resources used as materials.
- 6Why are air, water and soil called essential for life?
- 7A river is full of fish, but an old custom bans fishing in one pool. Which test does that pool fail?
- 8Pick any object near you and trace it back to a natural resource. Which group does it belong to?
Show answers (try them yourself first)
- 1A useful thing from nature that people did not make.
- 2Technologically accessible, economically feasible and culturally acceptable.
- 3Essential for life, materials, and energy.
- 4We may lack the technology to reach it, or the cost may be too high.
- 5Any two: wood, marble, stone, iron, gold.
- 6We cannot live without them and we cannot make them ourselves.
- 7The ‘culturally acceptable’ test.
- 8Example: a wooden bench comes from trees, so it belongs to the materials group.
Renewable and non-renewable resources
A cut on your finger heals by itself, and a burnt patch of forest slowly turns green again. Nature repairs and renews herself, but coal that has been burnt never comes back.
Renewable resources (sunlight, wind, flowing water, timber, soil) are renewed by nature's cycles. Non-renewable resources (coal, petroleum, iron, copper, gold) took millions of years to form and cannot be replaced as fast as we use them.
Key idea 1: Restoration and regeneration — Restoration means bringing a damaged thing back to its healthy state, as a cut heals. Regeneration goes further: nature creates new life and the conditions for it to thrive. Nature works in cycles with no waste: a fallen tree is eaten by bacteria, fungi and insects, enriches the soil, and new plants grow.
- Easy: Solar energy and wind energy are renewable resources.
- Medium: If timber is cut faster than the forest can grow back, even a renewable resource can be used up.
- Exam-type: India's coal reserves may last about 50 more years at the present demand, so coal must be used carefully until better options are widely available.
In the figure: A renewable resource stays renewable only while nature's rhythm of restoration and regeneration is not disturbed.
Key idea 2: When renewable resources are in danger — A resource stays renewable only if its natural rhythm is not disturbed. Fossil-fuel industries and clearing of forests raise temperatures, and some Himalayan glaciers now melt faster than snowfall replaces them; this threatens the water supply of people on the plains. Factory waste dumped in rivers cannot become food for any living thing, so the river turns poisonous. Traditional communities did not fish in the breeding season, but commercial over-fishing has pushed down the number of tuna.
Renewable does not mean unlimited. We must not use a resource faster than it renews.
Thinking that sun, wind, water and forests can be used in any way we like. They also need care.
Ask one question: can nature replace it in our lifetime? Yes means renewable. Memory clue: Renewable = Returns; Non-renewable = Never comes back (in our time).
Spot the difference
| Type | Examples | Replaced by nature? |
|---|---|---|
| Renewable | sunlight, wind, timber | yes, if used wisely |
| Non-renewable | coal, petroleum, gold | no, it takes millions of years |
Practice questions
- 1Name two renewable and two non-renewable resources.
- 2What is restoration?
- 3Why is coal called non-renewable?
- 4How does a fallen tree become part of nature's cycle?
- 5Why can timber stop being a renewable resource?
- 6How can melting Himalayan glaciers affect people on the plains?
- 7Fishing was once avoided in the breeding season. How did this help?
- 8A town's demand for electricity grows each year while its coal stock is limited. Suggest two steps.
Show answers (try them yourself first)
- 1Renewable: sunlight, wind. Non-renewable: coal, petroleum.
- 2Bringing a damaged thing back to its original healthy state.
- 3It formed over millions of years and cannot be replaced as fast as it is used.
- 4Bacteria, fungi and insects decompose it, it enriches the soil, and new plants grow.
- 5If trees are cut faster than the forest can grow back, the forest gets depleted.
- 6Rivers fed by glaciers may lose water, which threatens the water supply of the plains.
- 7Fish could breed, so the fish population was maintained.
- 8Use coal carefully and shift to renewable sources such as solar and wind energy; also save electricity.
Uneven distribution and the ‘paradox of plenty’
Some villages have a river at the doorstep while others walk far for water. In the same way, nature has not placed resources equally across the world, or even inside one country.
Natural resources are unevenly distributed. This shapes where people settle, how countries trade, and sometimes causes quarrels. The paradox of plenty (resource curse) means that a region with many resources may still grow slowly.
Key idea 1: Resources and human life — Settlements, trade and industry gather where resources are found. Trade fuelled the growth of large empires in India, and human skill combined with local resources created products such as Wootz steel. Rivers do not follow political borders: sharing Kaveri water among Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry needed long talks and careful management.
- Easy: Oil is drilled at Mumbai High in the sea, not in every state.
- Medium: The Kaveri flows through several states, so its water has to be shared by agreement.
- Exam-type: Two neighbouring countries sharing one river must negotiate, which is harder than sharing between states.
In the figure: Uneven distribution affects where people live, how they trade and how they share.
Key idea 2: The paradox of plenty — Having many resources does not make a country rich by itself. A region that only sells raw material, without industries that turn it into higher-value products, may grow slowly. India has largely avoided this by building industries for its needs. Turning resources into lasting benefit also needs knowledge, good governance and planning; otherwise the gain is only a short-lived windfall.
Resources alone do not make a country rich; skill, industry and good planning do.
Believing that a resource-rich region is always rich. The ‘paradox of plenty’ shows it can be the opposite.
Resource + industry + good governance = lasting benefit. Memory clue: R-I-G, ‘a Resource needs an Industry and Good governance’.
Spot the difference
| Idea | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Uneven distribution | resources are not equal everywhere | oil off the Mumbai coast |
| Shared resource | one resource, many users | Kaveri water |
| Paradox of plenty | many resources, slow growth | selling raw material without industry |
Practice questions
- 1What does ‘unevenly distributed’ mean?
- 2Name the states and the union territory that share Kaveri water.
- 3What is the paradox of plenty?
- 4Why do rivers cause tension between states?
- 5How did trade in resources help India's early empires?
- 6How has India largely avoided the resource curse?
- 7A country sells only raw ore and buys back finished goods. Why may it stay poor?
- 8Suggest three inputs needed to turn local resources into useful products.
Show answers (try them yourself first)
- 1Not spread equally; some places have a lot and others very little.
- 2Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry.
- 3A place rich in resources may still grow slowly.
- 4Rivers ignore political borders, so their water has to be shared.
- 5Trade fuelled the growth of large empires.
- 6By investing in industries that turn resources into products for its needs.
- 7It earns little from raw ore, while finished goods cost more, and it misses the jobs and skills of industry.
- 8Any three: knowledge and technology, skilled people, money for investment, power and transport, good governance.
Overuse: groundwater, soil and cement
A farmer's well gets deeper every year because everyone nearby draws water faster than the rain refills it.
Over-exploitation means taking more from nature than it can restore. The decline in the variety of life on Earth is called biodiversity loss.
Key idea 1: The Punjab groundwater case — In the 1960s Punjab farmers shifted to high-yielding wheat and paddy, which need more water. Free electricity encouraged heavy pumping, and chemical fertilisers and pesticides were also used. Today almost 80 per cent of Punjab's area is classified as over-exploited, groundwater is out of reach up to about 30 metres in a large part, and chemicals have dissolved in it and harm health. Food security was gained for the short term, but the long-term cost is heavy.
- Easy: Pumping out groundwater faster than rain refills it is over-exploitation.
- Medium: Free electric supply led to over-pumping of groundwater in much of India.
- Exam-type: Water harvesting, reviving ponds and tanks and reusing water are ways to raise groundwater levels.
In the figure: Heavy pumping pushes the water table down; rain harvesting and reviving tanks help it recover.
Key idea 2: Soil, cement and ecosystem services — Too many chemical fertilisers and pesticides degrade the soil, while traditional methods such as cow dung, mulching and multi-cropping kept it healthy. Cement is needed for houses, roads and bridges, but making it is one of the most polluting industries: fine dust harms lungs, settles on leaves and pollutes soil and water. Guidelines from the Central Pollution Control Board and materials such as mud, stone, plant-based materials and recycled plastic can reduce the harm. A forest filters water and stops soil erosion (ecosystem functions); the clean water and protected farmland we receive are ecosystem services.
Nature gives free services, such as clean water from forests. Destroying the forest ends them.
Thinking that more production today is always good. A short-term gain can cost the future.
Over-use means drawing faster than nature refills. Memory clue: Draw more than the refill and the well goes dry.
Spot the difference
| Problem | Cause | Remedy |
|---|---|---|
| Falling groundwater | over-pumping, water-hungry crops | rain harvesting, reuse |
| Soil damage | too many chemicals | dung, mulching, multi-cropping |
| Cement pollution | dust from production | guidelines, mud and recycled materials |
Practice questions
- 1What is biodiversity loss?
- 2Which state is the groundwater case study about?
- 3Name two harms caused by cement dust.
- 4Why did Punjab farmers need more water after the 1960s?
- 5What are ecosystem services? Give one example.
- 6Name two traditional farming practices that protect soil.
- 7Almost 80 per cent of Punjab is called ‘over-exploited’. What does this mean?
- 8Suggest three ways a city can slow the fall of its groundwater.
Show answers (try them yourself first)
- 1The decline in the variety of life on Earth.
- 2Punjab.
- 3It harms lungs and settles on leaves, reducing plant yield; it also pollutes soil and water.
- 4They shifted to high-yielding wheat and paddy, which need more water.
- 5Benefits we get from nature's functions, for example clean water from a forest.
- 6Any two: cow dung and natural manure, mulching, multi-cropping.
- 7Water is being drawn much faster than nature can refill it.
- 8Any three: rain harvesting, reviving ponds and tanks, reducing wasteful use, treating and reusing water.
Stewardship: wise use of resources
Grandparents who water the tulsi, save seeds for next year and mend things instead of throwing them away look after nature without using big words.
Stewardship means acting as a caretaker of natural resources: allow renewable resources to restore and regenerate, and use non-renewable ones carefully and wisely.
Key idea 1: Sikkim and old wisdom — Sikkim became a 100 per cent organic state in 2016. Farmers switched to compost, natural pest repellents made from neem and garlic, and many crops through the year. Yields fell at first and then recovered; birds and useful insects returned, tourism grew, and farmers' incomes rose by about 20 per cent on average. The old text Vṛikṣhāyurveda (Surapala, about the 10th century CE) advised on plants for soils, irrigation, natural pest control, crop rotation and mixed cropping.
- Easy: Organic farming uses compost instead of chemical fertilisers.
- Medium: Neem and garlic can be turned into natural pest repellents.
- Exam-type: Sikkim's change took years and yields dipped at first, but later farmers got better prices and incomes.
In the figure: From falling yields to a 100 per cent organic state.
Key idea 2: Clean energy and fairness — We should switch to renewable energy wherever we can. The Bhadla Solar Park in Rajasthan is a symbol of India's solar ambitions. India and France started the International Solar Alliance in 2015 for countries with plenty of sunshine, and India helped to channel money and expertise to developing countries. Access to clean water and air is also unfair: some city areas get little drinking water, and polluted air harms those who cannot protect themselves.
Everyone should get clean water and air. Stewardship also means fairness.
Believing that only the government needs to protect nature. Every family and farm can help.
Restore, Regenerate, Reduce. Memory clue: the 3 R's of care: Restore what is damaged, let it Regenerate, Reduce what you use.
Spot the difference
| Practice | What it does | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Organic farming | keeps soil healthy | Sikkim |
| Solar power | replaces coal for energy | Bhadla Solar Park |
| Traditional knowledge | guides careful farming | Vṛikṣhāyurveda |
Practice questions
- 1What is stewardship?
- 2In which year did Sikkim become a 100 per cent organic state?
- 3Which two countries started the International Solar Alliance?
- 4Name two natural pest repellents used by Sikkim farmers.
- 5Why did Sikkim's yields fall at first?
- 6Name one idea from Vṛikṣhāyurveda for healthy soil.
- 7How did organic farming help Sikkim beyond the farms?
- 8Why is the unequal supply of clean water an issue of fairness?
Show answers (try them yourself first)
- 1Acting as a caretaker of natural resources through restoration, regeneration and wise use.
- 22016.
- 3India and France.
- 4Neem and garlic.
- 5The soil was still recovering from years of chemical use.
- 6Any one: crop rotation, mixed cropping, suitable ploughing to keep moisture.
- 7Biodiversity flourished, tourism increased and farmers' incomes grew by about 20 per cent.
- 8Some people get enough and others do not, even though everyone needs it to live.