Natural Resources Aidee Zorrilla Hilleyri Binet

What does it mean?  Natural resources: materials or substances such as minerals, forests, water, and fertile land that occur in nature and can be used for economic gain. They naturally occur in environments that are relatively undisturbed by humans.

Examples  Rain forests-provide timber for humans  Waterfalls-provide spring water for humans, animals, and plants. Also a habitat for marine organisms.  Ocean-waves can be used to generate wave power and renewable energy.  Oil-used in cars, homes, and petroleum products.  Wind energy  Solar power

Renewable vs. nonrenewable  Renewable resources is any resource that can be replenished within a natural course of time.  Nonrenewable resources use cannot be sustained because their formation takes billions of years.  We are consuming these resources faster that they can be replenished.

Fossil fuels (nonrenewable)  Fossil fuels are fuels formed by natural processes such as anaerobic decomposition of buried dead organisms.(dead dinosaurs!)  Oil, coal, natural gas, etc.  The burning of fossil fuels by humans is the largest source of emissions of carbon dioxide, which is one of the greenhouse gases that allows radiative forcing and contributes to global warming.

Renewable  Sunlight  Air  Water  Few resources are considered inexhaustible or will not run out in the foreseeable future.  Solar radiation, geothermal energy, and air.(access to clean air may be hard to find due to the burning of fossil fuels)

Bonus facts!  Most are used for our survival while others are used for satisfying our luxurious needs.  Every man-made product is composed of natural resources.  There is world wide debate over natural resources allocations due to increasing scarcity.  The exportation of natural resources is the basis for many economies.