Natural resources are the sources from which society obtains many of its common needs for daily life, such as food, fuel, water and air. 

Natural resources are resources that occur independently of human activities and are the assets that are contained in the ecosystem and are created and enhanced without human interaction. Few examples are air, sunshine, water, flora, fauna, birds, and fossil fuels. 

Natural resources are those materials that are usable by mankind in any way (technological, economic, or biological), or derived from those resources (food, buildings, and clothing), as well as non-useful minerals, fuels, fertilizers, metals, water, and geothermal energy. Natural resources became the domain of the natural sciences for a long time.

• Renewable Natural Resources 

Renewable resources are those that are still accessible, no matter if they are used. After use, they can be reasonably restored or substituted. Vegetation, water, and air are examples. Livestock is also a renewable resource, and they can be reared and raised to create embryos to replace older animals. 

And if these resources are sustainable, replacing them may take tens to hundreds of years. Organic renewable resources are those that come from living objects such as livestock and plants, while inorganic renewable resources are those that come from nonliving things such as the sun, water and wind. 

• Non-Renewable Natural Resources

Nonrenewable resources are those that can’t be easily replaced or reclaimed after they’ve been used or lost. Minerals and fossil fuels are examples of those natural resources. Minerals are classified as nonrenewable since, although they grow spontaneously via the rock cycle, they require thousands of years to form. Since they are on the brink of extinction, certain organisms, often endangered ones, are classified as nonrenewable. 

It highlights the many factors why threatened species must be preserved at all costs. Nonrenewable resources, such as fossil fuels, are classified as organic, while nonrenewable resources, such as rocks and dust are classified as inorganic.

• Intensive Farming and Agricultural Practices 

Since farmers turn forests and grasslands into croplands, intensive farming activities have taken up a lot of natural resource space for Soil Formation And Erosion. The demand to turn land into resource areas for processing high-priced commodities, grains, and livestock has led to a depreciation of natural resources, especially trees, wildlife, and productive lands, in the modern world. Agricultural waste, fertilizers, and chemicals have also been shown to cause water and its pollution in coastal ecosystems, posing a threat to various native crop species, clean water resources, and aquatic life.

• Global Warming and Climate Change 

The extreme shifts in climate trends caused by human activity and overpopulation, which produce GreenHouse Effect and a carbon footprint in the environment, pose a danger to biodiversity and other natural resources. If climate change and global warming shift the favourable survival conditions, species that have acclimatized to unique ecosystems are particularly vulnerable. 

Climate change and global warming have had a significant impact on ecosystem destruction, putting wildlife and species sustainability in jeopardy. Because of global change, the biodiversity that needs cool temperatures at high elevations, such as the rock bunny and mountain gorillas, can soon run out of space.

• Pollution of the Environment 

The bulk of natural resources have been depleted, and a considerable number of the remaining resources are in grave danger as a result of hazardous contaminants and chemicals released by factories, home services, food goods, and other processed materials. Pollution of land, air, and water have long-term consequences for environmental resources and the nature of the ecosystems in which they exist, including the ozone layer and its depletion. 

Since contamination renders it difficult for biotic and abiotic elements to survive, severely contaminated natural resources have lost their importance. Pollution has an impact on the chemical makeup of lands, soils, ocean water, underground water, and minerals, as well as other natural processes. An acidic lake, for example, is incapable of supporting marine life.

The ways in which an element/compound moves between various living and nonliving forms in the biosphere is called a biogeochemical cycle. Biogeochemical cycles important to living organisms include the water, carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur cycles.

In this chapter, we learned about the basics of natural resources. We were taught about the types of natural resources and some cycles like Biogeochemical Cycles that have led to the depletion of natural resources. 

1. What are the 10 natural resources? 

Ten natural resources are:

• Water
• Air
• Coal
• Oil 
• Natural Gas
• Phosphorus
• Bauxite
• Copper
• Helium
• Iron

2. What are the natural resources examples? 

Oil, coal, natural gas, metals, stone, and sand are examples of natural resources. 

3. What are the 4 types of natural resources? 

Renewable, living, nonrenewable, and fossil fuels are the four natural resources. They are vital to our survival and life.

4. What are the 5 most important natural resources? 

The five most important natural resources are

• Air
• Water 
• Soil 
• Iron 
• Forests

5. Which plant is not a natural resource?

The hydrochloric plant is not a natural resources plant.