Natural Resources
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Source: https://www3.weforum.org/
Ecological Footprint
2
Source: https://www.footprintnetwork.org/our-work/ecological-footprint/
• ‘Ecological Footprint’ is the ecological services that a given population
requires to produce the natural resources it consumes and to assimilate
waste and carbon emissions generated whereas ‘bio capacity’ is the
productivity of the planet’s ecological assets to regenerate its natural
resources and absorb the wastes and carbon emissions generated.
• An ecological deficit occurs when the Ecological Footprint of a population
exceeds the bio capacity of the area available to that population. A national
ecological deficit means that the nation is importing bio capacity through
trade, liquidating national ecological assets or emitting carbon dioxide
waste into the atmosphere. An ecological reserve exists when the bio
capacity of a region exceeds its population's Ecological Footprint.
3
• Refer: https://www.downtoearth.org.in/blog/environment/is-your-
footprint-green-enough--
61133#:~:text=According%20to%20the%20National%20Footprints,th
an%20supply%20on%20its%20natural
4
Natural Resources
• Natural resources are materials, energy, and their attributes that
are derived from the Earth and are useful or of value to the
maintenance and improvement of the quality of human life.
• The harmonious links between soils, plants, animals, solar energy,
and water in a functioning Earth ensures the availability of natural
resources such as clean water, fertile soil, and clean air to sustain
human existence on our planet
• Natural resources are often categorized as renewable or
nonrenewable
5
• Refer: https://www.eolss.net/Sample-Chapters/C12/E1-02.pdf
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Renewable Resources
Renewable resources are the products of the natural processes
resulting from the harmonious interactions of the physical and
biological components of the Earth’s systems
Renewable resources regenerate naturally as long as the well-balanced
flow of matter and energy within the system is not altered by natural
catastrophe or human activity.
Source:
https://www.ibef.org/industry
/renewable-
energy/infographic
7
Non-Renewable Resources
Nonrenewable resources are those that are present in finite quantities
and cannot be regenerated within the lifespan of humans after they are
harvested or used. These include fossil fuels, minerals, and ores
They are considered nonrenewable because the rate at which they are
regenerated is extremely slow on the timescale of human perspective.
Refer:
https://beeindi
a.gov.in/sites/d
efault/files/1Ch
1.pdf
https://www.ei
a.gov/todayine
nergy/detail.ph
p?id=32912
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Drivers of Resource demand and Consumption
• Growing population
• Expanding industrial and service-related production
• Rising (average) income
• Growing middle class and/or expanding cohort of middle class
• Increasing urbanization
Refer: http://www.hrdp-
network.com/live/hrdpmp/hrdpmaster/igep/content/e48745/e
50194/e58089/ResourceEfficiency_Report_Final.pdf
9
Discussion on
• Land Resources
• Forest Resources
• Water Resources
• Mineral Resources
• Energy Resources
Refer:
https://niti.gov.in/planningcommission.gov.in/docs/plans/planr
el/fiveyr/3rd/3planch12.html
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Land Resources
• The most important natural resource of the country is land, which is the
base for agricultural production.
• While population grows, the land surface is fixed, and of this only a certain
proportion is available for cultivation. Several aspects of the problem need
to be studied.
• Through irrigation and other measures of agricultural development, the
productivity of land can be considerably increased. It is necessary to
ascertain the extent to which land now lying waste can become available
for cultivation. Increasing population also means withdrawal of areas now
under farms for building houses. Development of communications such as
roads, railways, and airways may take up fertile land. Owing to rapid
urbanisation and growth of large cities land is needed for parks and open
spaces. Irrigation dams may submerge fertile areas. Industrial plants and
other establishments also require substantial areas
11
• Refer:
https://niti.gov.in/planningcommission.gov.in/docs/plans/planrel/five
yr/3rd/3planch12.html
12
Soil formation
Definition of soil:
The upper layer of the ground made of
unconsolidated material produced due to
weathering agencies from the rocks and
generally modified subsequently by a
variety of mechanical, chemical and organic
processes all operating constantly in a
complex manner.
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• Parent material
parent material is the underlying bedrock - composition affects soil types
Factors • Time
Soils get better developed (Thicker, with greater differences between layers)
controlling with more time
soil • Climate
Biggest control on soil formation(Key factors are temperature and precipitation)
formation • Plants and animals
Organisms influence soil properties
Also furnish organic matter to the soil (especially plants)
• Slope
Steep slopes have poorly developed soils (due to faster erosion and downslope
transport)
Flatter terrain accumulates soil faster
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An idealized
soil profile
with
horizons Source : www.pinterest.com 15
O horizon – organic matter
A horizon – organic and mineral
matter
High biological activity
(animals live here)
Together the O and A
horizons make up topsoil
E horizon – little organic matter
Zone of leaching ( loss of
nutrients from soil)
B horizon – zone of accumulation
C horizon – partly altered parent
material
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Eluviation : The movement of various dissolved or suspended chemicals, minerals, etc.
downward through the soil due to the movement of ground water.
Soil erosion
Sheet erosion
Sheet erosion is the transport of loosened soil particles by
overland flow.
Rill erosion
When sheet flows begin to concentrate on the land surface, rill
erosion occurs. This type of erosion occurs when the duration
or intensity of rain increases, and runoff volumes accelerate.
Gully erosion
Gully erosion occurs when runoff water accumulates, and then
rapidly flows in narrow channels during or immediately after
heavy rains or melting snow, removing soil to a considerable
depth
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Causes of soil erosion
• Deforestation- Wind and water are the main agents
• Intensive agriculture
• Over grazing
Prevention and control
Source: wikimedia
a) Crop rotation
b) Strip farming (Strip cropping or strip farming is defined as alternating crop rows
between heavy-rooted plants and loosely-rooted plants to minimize erosion)
c) Ridge and furrow type of irrigation (Furrows are small, parallel channels, made to carry
water in order to irrigate the crop. The crop is usually grown on the ridges between the
furrows)
d) Cultivation of grassland
e) Mulches [protective layer of plants]
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Strip farming Ridge and furrow
3-year crop rotation
Source: wikimedia
Terrace construction Mulches 19
Wasteland reclamation
• Encourage social forestry.
• Less chemicals in agricultural practices.
• Construct water harvesting structures.
• No crop for one season such that land recovers mineral loss.
• Practice bioremediation to restore land. (Bioremediation is a waste
management technique that involves the use of organisms to remove or
neutralize pollutants from a contaminated site)
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Forest Resources
• Forests play an important role in balancing the Earth's CO2 supply and
exchange, acting as a key link between the atmosphere, geosphere, and
hydrosphere.
• It provides habitat for numerous animal species and is an important
source of medicinal ingredients.
• Commercial forestry is an important industry throughout the world.
Forests are cropped and re-harvested, and the new areas continually
sought for providing a new source of lumber.
• The main issues concerning forest management are depletion due to
natural causes (fires and infestations) or human activity (clear-cutting,
burning, land conversion), and monitoring of health and growth for
effective commercial exploitation and conservation.
21
• Refer: https://www.ceeindia.org/CEE-Academy-
resouce/PDF/Forest%20ecosystem%20Forest%20Types%20of%20Indi
a.pdf
22
Scheme of classification in India
Very dense Forest All Lands with tree cover (Including mangrove cover) of
canopy density of 70% and above
Mod Dense forest All lands with tree cover (Including mangrove cover) of
canopy density between 40% and 70% above
Open forest All lands with tree cover (Including mangrove cover) of
canopy density between 10% and 40%
Scurb All forest lands with poor tree growth mainly of small or
stunted trees having canopy density less than 10 percent
Non Forest Any area not included in the above classes
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Source: https://fsi.nic.in/scheme-of-classification
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Why are they important?
Play a very crucial role in every nation’s economical, social and
cultural activities
Many river systems originate in forests and anchor rich
biodiversity.
Forests provide:
• Timber
• Industrial wood
• Fuel wood
• Pulp for paper and
• Many non-timber products to the local communities and
national economy.
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Why are they important…
• Valuable source of biodiversity & provide important ‘Gene-Pool’
from which we derive medicines, domesticated plants, animals
etc.
• Reduce the energy of rainfall (sponge action) and reduce soil
erosion.
• Also reduce floods; moderate climate and serve as sink for
carbon dioxide.
• Shelter for large number of animals species.
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Impact of Forests
• In India more than 2,00,000 villages are located in the fringe of
forests.
• More than 20 crore people (including 7 crore tribals) depend on
forests for their livelihood.
• About 3 crore people are directly involved in gathering & trading
non-timber forest products like fruits, seeds, flowers, leaves,
honey, gum etc.
• Any impact on forest vegetation & biodiversity will have adverse
implications for livelihood of forest-dependent communities.
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Causes of deforestation
• Increase in population
• Urbanization & industrialization
• Mineral exploration
• Construction of dam reservoirs
• Infrastructure development
• Over grazing & Forest fires
• Human encroachment & exploitation
• Pollution-acid rain
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Based on the ecological footprint model, the
water footprint was devised to gain a better
understanding of water stress. It includes blue
water (pumped from groundwater), green
water (used by plants to produce biomass),
virtual water (contained in agricultural or
manufactured and traded products) and grey
water (used to remove pollution from effluents
and recycle them). The map is based on data
from the American think tank World Resources
Institute, and shows water stress projections
for 2040, which are arrived at by connecting up
the total annual water abstraction and the total
renewable resources available each year. The
highest figures indicate more competition
between users and affect a large section of the
global population: the western United States,
Mexico, the west coast of Latin America, the
Mediterranean region, the Middle East,
Western Asia, and the north of China.
30
• Refer: https://espace-mondial-atlas.sciencespo.fr/en/topic-
resources/map-5C33-EN-projected-water-stress-in-2040.html
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• Any disturbance to the flow of the rivers causes drought or floods.
• Floods are the result of peculiar rainfall pattern. Of the total annual rainfall,
75% occurs over 3-4 months. This leads to very heavy discharge from rivers
which floods large areas.
• Drought occur when rainfall is less than 400mm /year
Water
• Ganga-Brahmaputra-Meghna, which carry about 60% of total river flow is the
Resources most flood prone region of India. States of Assam, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh
(about 19 million hectares of land) get affected almost every year by floods.
• Similarly, 16% of the land area spread over 16 states is drought prone in
India.
32
Water Scarcity
And Need of
Watershed
management
Adapted from FAO (Ed.), Coping
With Water Scarcity: An Action
Framework for Agriculture and Food
Security. Food and Agriculture
Organization of the United Nations,
Rome, 2012.
33
Refer: https://wocatpedia.net/wiki/Watershed_management
https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/earth-and-planetary-sciences/watershed-management
https://www.fao.org/3/i3015e/i3015e.pdf
34
Watershed management programme
• To control damaging runoff and degradation and thereby conservation of soil and water.
• To manage and utilize the runoff water for useful purpose.
• To protect, conserve and improve the land of watershed for more efficient and
sustained production.
• To protect and enhance the water resource originating in the watershed.
• To check soil erosion and to reduce the effect of sediment yield on the watershed.
• To rehabilitate the deteriorating lands.
• To moderate the floods peaks at down stream areas.
• To increase infiltration of rainwater.
• To improve and increase the production of timbers, fodder and wild life resource.
• To enhance the ground water recharge, wherever applicable
35
Refer: https://agritech.tnau.ac.in/agriculture/agri_majorareas_watershed_watershedmgt.html
https://www.indiawaterportal.org/faqs/watershed
36
Common structures used in watershed management
• Contour building: Construction of narrow trapezoidal embankments
(bunds) along the contours to impound water
• Contour trenching: Excavation of trenches across the slope to break
the velocity of runoff, and bunds are created downstream with the
material dug out from the trenches
• Contour stone walls: Stones are dry packed across the hill slope to
intercept surface runoff
• Bench terraces: Conversion of slopes into level steps fields
• Farm bunds: Constructed on agricultural land, on the contour line, to
arrest soil erosion and improve soil moisture profile
37
Rainwater Harvesting
"Conscious collection and storage of rainwater to cater to demands of water, for drinking, domestic
purpose & irrigation is termed as Rainwater Harvesting”.
Why Rainwater Harvesting?
• To arrest ground water, decline and augment ground water table
• To beneficiate water quality in aquifers
• To conserve surface water runoff during monsoon
• To reduce soil erosion
• To inculcate a culture of water conservation
There are two ways of harvesting rainwater:
(i) Surface runoff harvesting
(ii) Roof top rainwater harvesting
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Surface runoff harvesting:
In urban area rainwater flows away as surface runoff. This runoff could be
caught and used for recharging aquifers by adopting appropriate methods.
Waterman of India
Rajendra Singh
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Arvari river,
Rajasthan
40
Manipal lake
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Roof top rainwater harvesting
• Harvesting rainwater from roof-tops is an easy
and eco-friendly method of augmenting
household-level water availability.
• Roof-top rainwater harvesting (RRH) involves
diverting and recharging (or) storing part of
the rainwater that falls on the roof of a house.
• RRH for recharging groundwater is a common
practice implemented in individual houses as
well as apartment complexes.
42
What is the inter-linking river project?
• It aims to Transfer water from surplus to water deficit areas in the country.
• Inter-Linking River Program will help saving the people living in drought-prone zones from hunger and people living
in flood-prone areas from the destruction caused by floods
What are the benefits?
• Irrigating 35 million hectares;
• Enabling full use of existing irrigation projects;
• Generating power to the tune of 34,000 MW with added
benefits, including flood control.
What is the cost?
• Cost of the project was estimated at 5,60,000 crore.
• The true cost can be known only when the detailed project reports of the 30 river link projects are drawn up
What is the problem?
• Environmental problems
• Exotic species
• Inter-state disputes 43
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45
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Types of mining
Open Mining Underground mining
Across the world, mining contributes to erosion,
sinkholes, deforestation, loss of biodiversity, significant
use of water resources, dammed rivers and ponded
waters, wastewater disposal issues, acid mine drainage
and contamination of soil, ground and surface water, all of
which can lead to health issues in local populations
(Rajaee et al. 2015; CSIR 2013; Liao et al. 2016)
Source: wikimedia 47
Environmental impacts of mining
• Air
• Water
• Land
• Health and Safety
48
• Refer: https://www.oecd.org/env/1830307.pdf
49
Special impacts in coastal areas
• Corals and other forms of life on the bottom generally require clear water for
growth.
• Dredging and other forms of coastal mining destroy the immediate site and affect a
much larger area through the sediment stirred up in the water.
• Removing sand and gravel from the beach can also cause beach disappearance and
serious coastal erosion.
• Copper and other toxic materials from mines may kill most marine life in the vicinity
of treatment and shipping facilities.
Long-term problems
Many islands have mining ghost towns and rusting equipment that are the only remaining signs of
brief periods of prosperity (Kudremukh and Kolar).
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Sustainable mining
• Sustainability principles have application for all stages of mine life cycle – exploration, mine
planning, construction, mineral extraction, mine closure and post-closure reclamation and
rehabilitation.
• Detailed EIA report has to be prepared and submitted to ecological & environment dept. of
GOI for clearance of mining project to safeguard the public interest.
• Dust has to be suppressed.
• The mined area has to be back-filled with excavated materials & restored to the
original condition.
• A green-belt has to be created.
• If houses & villages are to be displaced, adequate rehabilitation and welfare measures
need to be taken.
51
• Refer: https://www.downtoearth.org.in/blog/mining/can-mining-be-
sustainable--57683
52
Non-renewable
Fossil fuels : petroleum, coal, gas
Renewable
Wind
Wave [Tidal energy]
OTEC [Ocean thermal exchange
Energy capacitors]
Resources Solar
Hydro-power
Hydrogen energy - Fuel-cells
Biofuels: biomass energy
Sustainable
Nuclear power
53
54
Source: IRENA
• Refer: https://www.irena.org/publications/2017/May/Renewable-
Energy-Prospects-for-India
55
India is a signatory to the Paris Agreement. Under the agreement signed in
2015, India has committed to cut GHG (Green House Gas) emissions intensity
of its GDP by 33-35 per cent, increase non-fossil fuel power capacity to 40
per cent from 28 per cent in 2015, add carbon sink of 2.5-3 billion tonnes
CO2 per annum by increasing the forest cover, all by 2030.
• Read more at:
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/energy/oil-gas/india-facing-high-fossil-fuel-consumption-challenge-
official/articleshow/81574075.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst
56
Coal
Was the first fossil fuel to be used on
an industrial scale.
Remains a major force in world energy.
Economically recoverable reserves exist
in about 70 countries.
At the current rate of production,
global coal reserves are estimated to
last for almost another 150 years.
57
Wind Energy
Source: wikimedia
58
State-wise
electricity
produced
from wind
59
Ocean Thermal Energy
Conversion (OTEC)
• Source: wikimedia
60
Wave -Tidal
energy
Turning Tides into Usable Energy
• A dam (barrage) is built across the mouth of an estuary.
• Sluice gates allow incoming tides to fill the basin.
• As the tide ebbs(receding tide),
the water is forced through a turbine system to generate
electricity.
Source: wikimedia 62
Three basic ways to tap ocean for its energy
• Waves : Kinetic energy of the moving waves in the ocean can be used to
power a turbine.
• Tidal energy (Renewable resource) : A difference of atleast 5m height
between high and low tides is required for generating power.
• Temperature difference in water.
63
Solar energy
64
Devices
• There are two basic types of device
currently used to capture and
utilize solar radiation:
• Solar thermal collectors,
which are used to heat air,
water or other liquids, depending
on the application
• Photovoltaic (PV) collectors,
which convert
sunlight directly into electricity.
65
Solar thermal collector
Source: wikimedia
66
PV cell- roof top solar panels
Source: wikimedia 67
Hydropower…
Hydro helps power generation in 160 countries.
Five countries make up more than half of the
world’s hydropower production: Brazil, Canada,
China, Russia and the USA.
68
Source: wikimedia
The Changing Role of Hydropower
There are 45,000 large dams in the world and the majority do not have a
hydro component. Need to use it for power generation
Long-term economic advantage. Operating costs minimal-autonomy from
the fuel price is a distinct advantage.
Water management- multipurpose hydro reservoirs can bring security of
water supply as well as power.
69
Disadvantages
• Water logging
• Salinity of lands
• Siltation of reservoirs
• Submergence of forest lands and villages
• Displacement and rehabilitation of people affected
• Possibility of earthquakes
70
Hydrogen energy
71
Source: wikimedia
72
Biomass
energy
74
Biomass to
Biogas
(65%methane,
30% carbon
dioxide)
Sustainable - Nuclear Energy…
Nuclear energy is renewable and
economic alternative for coal.
Alternative to fossil fuels.
76
Nuclear
reactor
77
Source : World
nuclear association
78
Geothermal energy
Source: wikimedia 79
Geothermal plant
Source:http://www.geosyndicate.com/dchandra/geoe
nergyresource.html
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