Soil, wood, oil. minerals, petroleum, water are considered natural resources because they occur in their natural form and are not made by human beings.
Humans can only modify natural resources. The energy that makes natural resources comes from geochemical, geophysical and solar energy.
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The exploitation of nature and natural resources can be dated back to the advent of humankind and the very start of civilization. Earlier people used to cut trees for fuel, for building materials for boats and for shelter. There are two kinds of natural resources- renewable and nonrenewable.
Wood which is one of the main natural resources has the advantage of being renewable. Fish, animals and forests can renew themselves if they are not over-harvested. Forests can be replanted and, in time, the wood that was used can be replaced.
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However in recent times, we have been witnessing the cutting down of trees at alarming rates. In cities it is becoming, increasing difficult to see a green patch. If we do not replace these trees at the same speed as we are using them then very soon this resource will be expended. The cutting of trees also results in loss of ecosystems and soil erosion, and less rainfall. When fossil fuels were discovered they momentarily took the pressure off wood.
First there was coal, then oil as in crude oil or petroleum and then later petrol and more recently natural gas.
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However unlike trees that are a renewable resource all these are non renewable. The reserves are finite and at some point in the future they will be depleted.
We need to first conserve what we have left and to do that the call of the day is to use these natural resources sparingly and responsibly. We must resort to the use of alternative forms of energy which will lessen the burden on our natural resources.
There are various forms of alternative energy available. Light from the Sun also called as Solar Energy can be converted into electricity. This solar energy could be used to cook food. Wind power could also be used to generate electricity.
Bio gas which is generated by the action of bacteria on packed kitchen waste without oxygen could be used as an alternative to liquid petroleum gas. The need of the hour is to make alternative forms of energy easily available and viable to the consumer.
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Natural ecosystem preservation could be accomplished by maintaining abundance of nature, preservation of endangered species, keeping of biodiversity, and so on. Recently there have been increasing reports about research of ecosystem preservation using remote sensing or G1S (Geographic Information Systems) spatial analysis.
Sustainable forestry could be achieved by correctly managing forest resources through replanting, conversation, and protection from fire, disease and pollution.
We must all join hands in our efforts to preserve our natural resources. Preservation cannot happen without conservation; hence we must all do our part in conserving.
Instead of using individual cars to work we could use car pools, we could make an effort not to use our domestic appliances during peak hours, we could use public transport wherever possible and we could switch to alternative power use. We, each of us, can make preservation happen.