UNIT 2 NATURAL RESOURCES

1. UNIT 2 NATURAL RESOURCES

2. Natural Resources How can one sell the air? How can you buy or sell the sky, the warmth of the land? The idea is strange to us. If you do not own the freshness of the air and the sparkle of the water, how can you buy them? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . We are part of the earth and it is part of us. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  The air is precious to the red man, for all things share the same breath- the beast, the tree, the man, they all share the same breath.

3. What is man without beasts? If all the beasts were gone, man would die from a great loneliness of the spirit. For whatever happens to the beasts, soon happens to man. All things are connected .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . This we know- The earth does not belong to us we belong to earth. This we know. All things are connected like blood which unites our family. All things are connected. Whatever befalls the earth befalls the sons and daughters of the earth.We did not weave the web of life We are merely strands in it.Whatever we do the web, we do to ourselves -Ted Perry

4. Natural Resources Definition: variety of goods and services provided by nature which are necessary for our day-to-day lives • Plants, animals and microbes (living or biotic part) • Air, water, soil, minerals, climate and solar energy (non-living or abiotic part) Ecosystem Interactions between the abiotic aspects of the nature and specific living organisms together • Ecosystems act as resource producers and processors • Solar energy is the main driving force and source of energy for growth of plants in forests, grasslands and ecosystem.

5. Natural Resources Abiotic (Air, Water, Minerals etc.) Biotic (Plant & Animal Species) Ecosystem Structure of Natural Resources and it’s Usefulness • Biotic: Plant and animal species • Abiotic: Air, water, minerals, etc. • Interactions between the abiotic aspects of nature and specific living organisms together form ecosystems of various types.

6. Event Time Line Birth of Earth 4600 m.y. ago Earliest Cells 3600 m.y. ago First Algae 1200 m.y. ago Explosion of Algae & Marine forms 560 m.y. ago First Fish 488 m.y. ago Reptiles & Conifers 359 m.y. ago Mamals & Dinosaurs 251 m.y. ago Whales & Horses 55.8 m.y. ago Grasses 33.9 m.y. ago Forests 23 m.y. ago Glaciers 1.8 m.y. ago Humans (Hunters) 11,500 years ago History of Our Global Environment and Changes in Land and Resource Use Natural Ecological Changes

8. Undoing A Miracle- In Our Own Peculiar Way ! • Earth’s atmosphere was so hot that there was no chance of life on Land. • 600 million years ago some thing happened. • The Algae started growing in shallow waters. • The Oxygen level in atmosphere rose to 1% of atmosphere. • This started a chain of miraculous interactive process- Algae started growing more; In turn Oxygen level started increasing. • The Algae and Fungi started growing on land further boosting Oxygen level and substantially decreasing Carbon dioxide level.

9. In next 150 million years Oxygen rose to 10%. This cooled the earth’s atmosphere and diverse forms of land life started blooming. Our life on this earth 430 million years later owes solely to this miracle. • Fossil fuels: Plants on land absorbed Carbon dioxide; When they died and buried in to the earth over millions of years, carbon locked in fossils buried deep in earth became source of fossil fuels. • Plants took the heat away from earth’s atmosphere and buried deep beneath, so that Our specie be born on this Earth.  • Now, What we are Doing? Cutting the forests for profit and Urbanization Degrading the ecosystem which boosts the oxygen and reduces CO2 content in the atmosphere.

10. Development Material Resource Financial Resource Artificial (Man Made) Natural Why to bother about natural resources? Natural Resource to Artificial Material Resources & Financial resource is One Way Traffic !!  Is that a Big Problem ??

11. Natural Resources and Associated Problems The Unequal Consumption of Natural Resources • A major part of natural resources consumed in the ‘developed’ world. • The ‘developing nations’ also over use many resources because of their greater human population. • However, the consumption of resources per capita (per individual) of the developed countries is up to 50 times greater than in most developing countries.

12. Advanced countries produce over 75% of global industrial waste and greenhouse gases. • Energy from fossil fuels consumed in relatively much greater quantities in developed countries. • Their per capita consumption of food too is much greater as well as their waste The USA for example with just 4% ofthe world’s population consumes about 25% of the world’s resources. • Producing animal food for human consumption requires more land than growing crops. Thus countries that are highly dependent on non-vegetarian diets need much larger areas for pastureland than those where the people are mainly vegetarian.

13. Planning Land use • Land - a major resource- food production, animal husbandry, industry, and for our growing human settlements. • Intensive land use extended at the cost of ‘wild lands’, our remaining forests, grasslands, wetlands and deserts. • It is essential to evolve a rational land-use policy • Scientists today believe that at least 10 percent of land and water bodies of each ecosystem must be kept as wilderness for the long-term needs of protecting nature and natural resources. • Land as a resource - under serious pressure- an increasing ‘land hunger’ • The most damaging change in land use- rapidity with which forests have vanished during recent times, both in India and in the rest of the world. • Forests - a variety of services - Maintaining oxygen levels in the atmosphere, removal of carbon dioxide, control over water regimes, and slowing down erosion and also produce products such as food, fuel, timber, fodder, medicinal plants, etc.

14. The Need for Sustainable Lifestyles The quality of human life and the quality of ecosystems on earth are indicators of the sustainable use of resources. There are clear indicators of sustainable lifestyles in human life. • Increased longevity • An increase in knowledge • An enhancement of income. • These three together are known as the ‘human development index’. The quality of the ecosystems have indicators that are more difficult to assess. • A stabilized population. • The long term conservation of biodiversity. • The careful long-term use of natural resources. • The prevention of degradation and pollution of the environment.

15. Anatomy of Earth’s Resources and theirImportance Atmosphere • Provides oxygen for life on earth. • Troposhere is a natural thermostat. Balances the temperature to a level which is conducive for survival of life on earth. • Stratosphere has ozone layer which is protective shield against ultraviolet rays and Sulphate layer which is responsible for formation of rain. Hydrosphere • Provides fresh water for life sustenance and agriculture. • Means for producing energy • Provides humans with sea and fresh water foods.

16. Lithosphere • Soil ecology provides fertile soil for agriculture • Storehouse of Minerals, Fossil fuels. Biosphere • Provides Food for all Biotic interdependent species. • Source for Variety of bio-products useful for human life • Timber, Medicinal plants and Organisms. • Very important for maintaining balance of Ecosystem.

17. Natural Cycles Between the Sphere • All four spheres are closely inter-linked systems and are dependent on the integrity of each other BIOGEOCHEMICAL CYCLES • Biogeochemical cycles include oxygen, carbon, nitrogen and sulfur cycles Biogeochemical cycle:

18. Renewable and Non-Renewable Resources • Renewable resources Natural resources which can be used but can be regenerated by natural processes, provided if there is no intervention in natural regeneration cycle. Example: Water, Wood • Non Renewable Resources Those which will be exhausted in the future if we continue to extract these without a thought for subsequent generations. Example: Minerals, Fossil fuels.

19. Types of Resources • Forest Resource • Water Resource • Land Resource • Mineral Resource   • Food Resource • Energy Resource

20. Forest Resources Use and Overexploitation • India ideally should have 33 percent of its land under forests. Today we have only about 12 percent. Thus we need not only to protect existing forests but also to increase our forest cover. • People who live in or near forests know the value of forest resources first hand because their lives and livelihoods depend directly on these resources. The water we use depends on the existence of forests on the watersheds around river valleys. Our homes, furniture and paper are made from wood from the forest. We use many medicines that are based on forest produce. And we depend on the oxygen that plants give out and the removal of carbon dioxide we breathe out from the air. • Forests once extended over large tracts of our country. People have used forests in our country for thousands of years. As agriculture spread the forests were left in patches which were controlled mostly by tribal people. They hunted animals and gathered plants and lived entirely on forest resources.

21. Deforestation became a major concern during British times since a large amount of timber was extracted for building their ships. British developed scientific forestry in India. They also alienated local people by creating Reserved and Protected Forests which curtailed access to the resources. • This led to a loss of stake in the conservation of the forests which led to a gradual degradation and fragmentation of forests across the length and breadth of the country. • Another period of overutilisation and forest degradation - early period following independence - people felt that now that the British had gone they had a right to using our forests in any way we pleased. The following years saw India’s residual forest wealth dwindle sharply. Timber extraction continued to remain the Forest Department’s main concern up to the 1970s. • The fact that forest degradation and deforestation was creating a serious loss of the important functions of the forest began to override its utilisation as a source of revenue from timber.

22. Deforestation • Where civilizations have looked after forests by using forest resources cautiously, they have prospered, where forests were destroyed, the people were gradually impoverished. • Today logging and mining are serious causes of loss of forests in our country and all over the world. Dams built for hydroelectric power or irrigation have submerged forests and have displaced tribal people whose lives are closely knit to the forest. This has become a serious cause of concern in India. • One of India’s serious environmental problems is forest degradation due to timber extraction and our dependence on fuelwood. A large number of poor rural people are still highly dependent on wood to cook their meals and heat their homes. We have not been able to plant enough trees to support the need for timber and fuelwood.

23. The National Forest Policy of 1988 now gives an added importance to JFM. Another resolution in 1990 provided a formal structure for community participation though the formation of Village Forest Committees. Based on these experiences, new JFM guidelines were issued in 2000. This stipulates that at least 25 per cent of the income from the area must go to the community. From the initiation of the program, until 2002, there were 63,618 JFM Committees managing over 140,953 sq. km of forest under JFM in 27 States in India. • The States have tried a variety of approaches to JFM. The share for village forest committees ranges from 25 per cent in Kerala to 100 per cent in Andhra Pradesh, 50 per cent in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Orissa and Tripura. In many States 25 per cent of the revenue is used for village development. In many States non-timber forest products (NTFPs) are available for people free of cost. Some States have stopped grazing completely; some have rotational grazing schemes which have helped in forest regeneration.

24. Timber extraction, mining and dams are invariably parts of the needs of a developing country. • If timber is overharvested the ecological functions of the forest are lost. • Unfortunately forests are located in areas where there are rich mineral resources. • Forests also cover the steep embankments of river valleys, which are ideally suited to develop hydel and irrigation projects. • Thus there is a constant conflict of interests between the conservation interests of environmental scientists and the Mining and Irrigation Departments. • What needs to be understood is that long-term ecological gains cannot be sacrificed for short-term economic gains that unfortunately lead to deforestation. • These forests where development projects are planned, can displace thousands of tribal people who lose their homes when these plans are executed. This leads to high levels of suffering for which there is rarely a satisfactory answer.

25. Types of Forests Depending on the temperature and precipitation(all forms in which water comes down to earth) forests of different type exists in different regions of the earth. They are:- • Tropical forests • Temperate forests • Coniferous forests • Tundra forests • Grasslands

26. Tropical Forests • Conditions for existence:Hot & Humid regions near equator. Abundant rainfall (2000-4500mm) almost daily; Temperature varies little over the year • Geographical Location:South & Central America, Western & Central Africa, South East Asia, Islands of Indian & Pacific ocean • Importance:They cover only 2% of earth, but sustains 50-80% of terrestrial plant species. Have 3 distinct layers of vegetation. Apart from preserving immense bio-diversity, they play a major role in maintaining hydrological cycle. They return as much as 75% of moisture they receive from atmosphere.

27. Temperate Forests • Conditions for existence: Seasonal variations in climate- very cold in winter and warm & humid in summer. Annual rainfall 750-2000mm. Rich soil. • Geographical location: Western & Central Europe, East Asia, Eastern part of North America. • Importance: Sustain leaf shedding trees(deciduous), Coniferous trees, shrubs, fern, lichens and moss. Home to wide variety of micro organisms, birds and mammals.

28. Coniferous Forests • Conditions for existence: Long & Cold winters. Precipitation is light in winter and heavy in summer. Soil is acidic and humus rich. • Geographical location:Northern parts of North America, Europe, Asia. • Importance: Home to Large and small herbivores. Important nesting area for migratory birds.

29. Tundra (Arctic) Forests • Conditions for existence: High altitudes where snow melts seasonally. Long and harsh winter, short summer. Prcipitation to the extent of 100-250mm • Geographical location: Extreme Northern Latitudes • Importance: Home to very few species. Destination of migratory birds. Very fragile ecosystem. Threatened by oil explorations and military operations.

30. Grass Lands • Conditions for existence: Regions where annual precipitation is high enough (250-1500mm); Erratic rainfall; Hot & Dry in summer. • Geographical location: Vast expanse of planes and rolling hills in the interior of continents. Central & North America, Central Russia & Siberia, Sub equatorial Africa, South America, South India, North Australia. • Importance: Rich soil to sufficient depth. Supports many grass species. Sparse bushes and occasional woodlands. Sustains large grazing mammals and predators. • Savannas are tropical grass lands with widely scattered low trees. • African Savannas are known for Zebra, Giraffe and Antelopes.

31. Mountains consists of 20% of earth’s area. They will have dramatic changes in climatic conditions at different altitudes. Hence all kinds of forests can exist on mountains at different altitudes. Majority of world’s forests are in mountains. • Mountains play a vital role in hydrological cycle. Soil and vegetation absorb precipitation and slowly release the water through streams, which on their run join other such streams to form rivers. • Loss of vegetation and soil erosion affects water cycle and increases siltation of rivers.

32. Type Percentage (%) Location Tropical moist deciduous 37 Andamans, U.P., Madhya Pradesh, Gujarath, Maharastra, Karnataka, Kerala Tropical dry deciduous 28 North strip of Himalayas, South strip of Kanyakumari Tropical dry evergreen 8 Western ghats, Andamans, Assam Subtropical pine 7 Himalayas Others 20 Distribution of Indian Forests by Type

33. India’s Forest Cover : 6,76,000 sq.km. (20.55% of geographic area) • Dense Forests : 4,17,000 sq.km. • Open Forests : 2,59,000 sq.km. • Mangroves ; 4,490 sq.km. • Madhya Pradesh- 77,265 sq.km. (11.5%) • Arunachal Pradesh – 68,045 sq.km. (10%) • Chattisgarh – 56,448 sq.km. (8.4%)

34. Functions of the Forests • Watershed protection Reduce the rate of surface run-off of water. Prevent flash floods and soil erosion. Produces prolonged gradual run-off and thus prevent effects of drought • Atmospheric regulation Absorption of solar heat during evapo-transpiration. Maintaining carbon dioxide levels for plant growth. Maintaining the local climatic conditions. • Erosion control Holding soil (by preventing rain from directly washing soil away) • Land bank Maintenance of soil nutrients and structure.

35. Local use Consumption of forest produce by local people who collect it for subsistence (Consumptive use) • Food - gathering plants, fishing, hunting (for food) from the forest. • Fodder - for cattle. • Fuel wood and charcoal for cooking, heating. • Poles - building homes especially in rural and wilderness areas. • Timber – household articles and construction. • Fiber - weaving of baskets, ropes, nets, string, etc. • Sericulture – for silk. • Apiculture - bees for honey, forest bees also pollinate crops. • Medicinal plants - traditionally used medicines, investigating them as potential source for new modern drugs.

36. Market use • Most of the above products used for consumptive purposes are also sold as a source of income for supporting the livelihoods of forest dwelling people. • Minor forest produce - (non-wood products): Fuelwood, fruit, gum, fiber, etc. which are collected and sold in local markets as a source of income for forest dwellers. • Major timber extraction - construction, industrial uses, paper pulp, etc.

37. Impact of Human Activity on Forests • The clearing and burning of forests for agriculture, cattle rearing and timber extraction results in loss of biodiversity, extinction of species and soil erosion, loss of top soil and disturbance of the carbon cycle leading to global warming. • The clearing of forest lands in hilly areas for agriculture, plantation and housing leads to land slides and floods. It also increases siltation of rivers. • Industries operating in the vicinity of forests results in acid deposition in forests.

38. Harvesting of old growth forests destroys rare plant species and seriously affects the crucial habitat of endangered species. • Pesticide spraying to control insects in forest plantations leads to poisoning all the way up the food chain and unintended loss of predatory species like hawks, owls and eagles; This in turn leads to increase in pest population. • Dams built in forests drown huge areas. Consequently not only species will be destroyed for ever but also displaces forest dwellers. Human displacement apart from violating human rights of forest dwellers, destroys the communities who have knowledge of sustainable use of forests. • Tundra forests are seriously threatened by oil explorations and military operartions.

39. Conservation of Forest Resources Joint Forest Management (JFM) • The need to include local communities in Forest Management has become a growing concern. • Local people will only support greening an area if they can see some economic benefit from conservation. An informal arrangement between local communities and the Forest Department began in 1972, in Midnapore District of West Bengal. • JFM has now evolved into a formal agreement which identifies and respects the local community’s rights and benefits that they need from forest resources. • Under JFM schemes, Forest Protection Committees from local community members are formed. They participate in restoring green cover and protect the area from being over exploited.

40. Water Resources Facts • No plant or animal specie can survive without water • If water in our body drops by 1% we feel thirst, if it drops by 10% we face death. • Water is renewable resource; It may change it’s form but quantity of water on earth has remained same for millions of years. • Out of 1400 million cu.km. of water available on earth, only 14 million cu.km. is fresh water. Out of this 7 million cu.km. is ground water. Only 2,00,000 cu.km. is available in rivers and lakes. Out of 43,00,000 cu.km. of water evaporating from oceans, only 40,000 cu.km. falls on land as rain and snow. • According to WHO estimates per capita annual healthy water requirement for humans is 1700 cu.m.(@ per capita100-200 LPD). At annual fresh water supply of 40,000 cu.km. (at population of 6 billion) annual per capita availability is 6600 cu.m.

41. If water availability in a country drops below 1700 cu.m. per capita per year it is called “Water Stress”; If it falls below 1000 cu.m. it said to be “Water Scarcity”; If it falls below 500 cu.m. it is the state of “Absolute Scorcity”. • In India per capita water availability was 5177 cu.m. in 1951, 2464 cu.m. in 1990 and is down to 1820 cu.m. in 2001. • In Industrialized countries 30% is used for agriculture, 59% for Industry and 11% for domestic use; Comparative figures for India are (in bracket global average) 80%(70%), 15%(22%), 5%(8%). • Almost all water use by industry gets polluted; Let down to fresh water bodies, it further contaminates available fresh water.

42. Uses of Water • Domestic use • Agricultural use • Commercial • Industrial use

43. The overall management of water resources is one of the greatest challenges facing the world in this century • World population - > 6 billion and will continue to increase significantly during the next few decades - Enormous demands on the world’s limited freshwater supply. The total annual freshwater withdrawals today are estimated at 3800 cubic kilometers, twice as much as just 50 years ago (World Commission on Dams, 2000). • A person needs a minimum of 20 to 40 liters of water per day for drinking and sanitation. More than one billion people worldwide have no access to clean water, and to many more, supplies are unreliable. Local conflicts are already spreading to states. Example Karnataka and Tamil Nadu over the waters of the Krishna.

44. India is expected to face critical levels of water stress by 2025. • At the global level 31 countries are already short of water and by 2025 there will be 48 countries facing serious water shortages. • The UN has estimated that by the year 2050, 4 billion people will be seriously affected by water shortages. This will lead to multiple conflicts between countries over the sharing of water. • Around 20 major cities in India face chronic or interrupted water shortages. There are 100 countries that share the waters of 13 large rivers and lakes. • The upstream countries could starve the downstream nations leading to political unstable areas across the world. Examples are Ethopia, which is upstream on the Nile and Egypt, which is downstream and highly dependent on the Nile. • International accords that will look at a fair distribution of water in such areas will become critical to world peace.

45. Overutilization and Pollution of Surface and Groundwater • Growth of human population - an increasing need for larger amounts of water to fulfill a variety of basic needs. • Overutilization of water occurs at various levels. • Use of more water than really needed. • Many agriculturists use more water than necessary to grow crops. Ways in which farmers can use less water without reducing yields - use of drip irrigation systems. • Agriculture also pollutes surface water and underground water - excessive use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Use of biomass as fertilizer, non toxic pesticides such as neem products, integrated pest management systems reduces the agricultural pollution of surface and ground water.

46. Industry in order to maximise short-term economic gains does not bother its liquid waste and releases it into streams, rivers and the sea. • In the longer term, as people become more conscious of using ‘green products’ made by ecosensitive industries, the polluter’s products may not be used. • The polluting industry that does not care for the environment and pays off bribes to get away from the cost needed to use effluent treatment plants may eventually be caught, punished and even closed down. • Public awareness may increasingly put pressures on industry to produce only eco-friendly products which are already gaining in popularity.

47. Global Climate Change • Changes in climate at a global level • Caused by increasing air pollution – have begun to affect our climate. • In some regions global warming, El Nino winds - created unprecedented storms. In other areas, they lead to long droughts. • The ‘greenhouse effect’ - atmospheric pollution - increasingly erratic and unpredictable climatic effects - seriously affected regional hydrological conditions.

48. Floods • A serious environmental hazard for centuries. • People have deforested catchments and intensified use of river flood plains that once acted as safety valves. • Wetlands in flood plains are nature’s flood control systems into which overfilled rivers could spill and act like a temporary sponge holding the water, and preventing fast flowing water from damaging surrounding land. • Deforestation in the Himalayas causes floods that year after year kill people, damage crops and destroy homes in the Ganges and its tributaries and the Bramhaputra. Rivers change their course during floods and tons of valuable soil is lost to the sea. As the forests are degraded, rainwater no longer percolates slowly into the subsoil but runs off down the mountainside bearing large amounts of topsoil. This blocks rivers temporarily but gives way as the pressure mounts allowing enormous quantities of water to wash suddenly down into the plains below. There, rivers swell, burst their banks and flood waters spread to engulf peoples’ farms and homes.

49. Drought • Periods when there is a serious scarcity of water to drink, use in farms, or provide for urban and industrial use. • Drought prone areas -irregular periods of famine. Agriculturists - no income in these bad years - they have no steady income- a constant fear of droughts. • India - ‘Drought Prone Areas Development Programs’ - used in such areas - to buffer the effects of droughts. People are given wages in bad years to build roads, minor irrigation works and plantation programs. • Drought has been a major problem in our country especially in arid regions. It is an unpredictable climatic condition and occurs due to the failure of one or more monsoons. It varies in frequency in different parts of our country. While it is not feasible to prevent the failure of the monsoon, good environmental management can reduce its ill effects. The scarcity of water during drought years affects homes, agriculture and industry. It also leads to food shortages and malnutrition which especially affects children.

50. Several measures can be taken to minimise the serious impacts of a drought. However this must be done as a preventive measure so that if the monsoons fail its impact on local people’s lives is minimised. • In years when the monsoon is adequate, we use up the good supply of water without trying to conserve it and use the water judiciously. Thus during a year when the rains are poor, there is no water even for drinking in the drought area. • Deforestation - worsens the effect of drought. • Once hill slopes are denuded of forest cover the rainwater rushes down the rivers and is lost. Forest cover permits water to be held in the area permitting it to seep into the ground. This charges the underground stores of water in natural aquifers. This can be used in drought years if the stores have been filled during a good monsoon. If water from the underground stores is overused, thewater table drops and vegetation suffers. This soil and water management and afforestation are long-term measures that reduce the impact of droughts.