Resources and development Flashcards
Define resource
Everything available in our environment which can be used to satisfy our needs, provided, it is technologically accessible, economically feasible and culturally acceptable can be termed as ‘Resource’.
“Resources are a function of human activities.” Justify this statement.
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Mere presence of resources, as free gifts of nature, does not make them resources. Human beings are essential components of resources because they transform material available in our environment into resources. The utility of resources depends on the stage of cultural development of man and the tools and technology used by him.
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- The process of transformation of things available in our environment involves an interactive relationship between nature, technology and institutions.
- Human beings interact with nature through technology and create institutions to accelerate their economic development.
- Human beings themselves are essential components of resources. They transform material available in our environment into resources and use them.
What is the relationship between nature, technology and institutions?
The process of transformation of things available in our environment involves an inter - dependent relationship between nature, technology and institutions. Human beings interact with nature through technology and create institutions to accelerate their economic development.
How are resources classified?
Resources can be classified in the following four ways:
(a) On the basis of Origin:
Biotic
Abiotic
(b) On the basis of exhaustibility:
Renewable
Non-renewable
(c) On the basis of ownership:
Individual (Personal) Community National International (d) On the basis of status and development:
Potential
Developed
Reserve
Stock
Explain the classification of resources on the basis of origin and give one example of each
On the basis of origin, resources can be classified as Biotic and Abiotic.
Biotic Resources are obtained from the biosphere. They have life or are living resources, e.g., human beings, fisheries, forests, etc.
Abiotic Resources include all non-living things, e.g., rocks and minerals.
Classify the resources on the basis of exhaustibility and give two examples of each.
On the basis of exhaustibility, resources can be classified as: Renewable and Non-renewable.
Renewable Resources. The resources which can be renewed or reproduced by physical, chemical and mechanical processes are known as renewable or replenishable resources, e.g., water, wildlife, forests, solar energy, wind energy etc.
Non-renewable Resources. The resources which once get exhausted, cannot be remade. They take a long geological period of time, i.e., millions of years in their formation, e.g., minerals, fossil fuels etc.
Explain four types of resources based on ownership and give one example of each type.
- Individual Resources. Resources, which are owned privately by individuals, e.g., farmers own
pieces of land or houses. Plantation, pasture lands, water in wells are some resources owned by individuals. - Community Owned Resources. These resources are accessible to all the members of the community, e.g., village ponds, public parks, playgrounds in urban areas are accessible to all the residents of that area.
- National Resources. All the resources within the political boundary of a nation including the territorial water (oceanic area upto 12 nautical miles from the coast) extending into the ocean and resources therein belong to the nation, e.g., all minerals, forests, wildlife, water resources, land etc.
- International Resources. There are international institutions which own and regulate some resources, e.g., The oceanic resources beyond 200 km of the Exclusive Economic Zone belong to the open ocean and no individual country can utilise these without the concurrence of international institutions.
Classify resources on the basis of development.
- Potential Resources- Resources which are found in a region, but have not been utilised, e.g.r Gujarat and Rajasthan have a lot of potential for the development of wind and solar energy, but so far they have not been developed fully.
- Developed Resources- Resources which are surveyed and their quality and quantity have been determined for utilisation. The development of resources depends on technology and level of their feasibility, e.g., water resources used for hydel power generation or irrigation purposes.
- Stock- Materials in the environment, which have the potential to satisfy human needs but man does not have the appropriate technology to access them are included among stock, e.g. water is a compound of two inflammable gases: hydrogen and oxygen, which can be used as a rich Source of energy. But we do not have the required technical know-how to use them for this purpose.
- Reserves- Reserves are the subset of the stock, which can be put into use with the help of existing technical ‘know-how’ but their full use has been postponed for meeting the future needs, e.g., forest reserves, iron-ore reserves, water in the dams etc.
How are natural resources important for man? Give five points.
- Resources are vital for human survival.
- They are important for maintaining the quality of life as man has been using the bio-physical environment to satisfy his needs.
- Natural resources form the backbone of the economy of a nation.
- These are the bases for economic strength and prosperity of the people.
- They provide material, energy and favourable conditions for development.
List the problems which resulted due to indiscriminate use of resources by man.
- It has resulted in depletion of many resources.
- Accumulation of resources in few hands which, in turn, divided the society in two segments, i.e., haves and have-nots or rich and poor.
- It has led to the global ecological crisis, e.g., global warming, ozone layer depletion, environmental pollution, land degradation, etc.
Define sustainable development.
Sustainable economic development means that ‘development should take place without damaging the environment and development in the present should not compromise with the needs of future generation.’
Explain the role of human in resources development. (Portal notes)
- Development of a country depends on the overall development of the human resources.
- Humans enhance the development of economy of a country.
- They are responsible for the transformation of different substances into more useful forms thus utilizing their full potential.
- Social backwardness is also eradicated.
What is Agenda 21? List its two principles.
- Agenda 21 was adopted at first International Earth Summit held in 1992 at Rio de Janerio Brazil.
The two principles are as follows: - To combat environmental damage, poverty disease through global cooperation on common interests, mutual needs and shared responsibilities.
- [I don’t know how this is a principle when in the book this is considered as an objective] Every local government should draw its own local Agenda 21.
Write a note on Rio de Janerio Earth Summit, 1992
- In June 1992, more than 100 heads of states
met in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, for the first
International Earth Summit. - The Summit was convened for addressing urgent problems of environmental protection and socioeconomic development at the global level.
- The assembled leaders signed the Declaration on Global Climatic Change and Biological Diversity. The Rio Convention endorsed the global Forest Principles and adopted Agenda 21 for achieving Sustainable Development in the 21st century.
Give reason, why is resource planning necesarry
- Planning is the widely accepted strategy for
judicious use of resources. It has importance in a country like India, which has enormous
diversity in the availability of resources. - There are regions which are rich in certain types of
resources but are deficient in some other
resources. - There are some regions which can be considered self sufficient in terms of the availability of resources and there are some regions which have acute shortage of some vital resources.
Examples:
- the states of Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Madhya
Pradesh are rich in minerals and coal deposits.
- Arunachal Pradesh has abundance of water resources but lacks in infrastructural development.
- The state of Rajasthan is very well endowed with solar and wind energy but lacks in water resources.
- The cold desert of Ladakh is relatively isolated from the rest of the country. It has very rich cultural heritage but it is deficient in water, infrastructure and some vital minerals
“India has enormous diversity in the availability of resources.” Name four varied regions to justify this statement.
- the states of Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Madhya
Pradesh are rich in minerals and coal deposits. - Arunachal Pradesh has abundance of water resources but lacks in infrastructural development.
- The state of Rajasthan is very well endowed with solar and wind energy but lacks in water resources.
- The cold desert of Ladakh is relatively isolated from the rest of the country. It has very rich cultural heritage but it is deficient in water, infrastructure and some vital minerals
Explain three stages of ‘resource planning.’
- Identification and inventory of resources across the regions of the country. This involves surveying, mapping and the qualitative and quantitative estimation and measurement of the resources.
- Evolving a planning structure endowed with appropriate technology, skill and institutional set up for implementing resource development plans
- Matching the resource development plans with overall national development plans
Write four factors which determine resource development in a region.
- Availability of resources: The availability of resources is a necessary condition for the development of any region.
- Level of technology: Mere availability of resources in the absence of corresponding changes in technology and institutions may hinder development.
- Quality of human resources: There are
many regions in our country that are rich in
resources but these are included in economically
backward regions. On the contrary there are
some regions which have a poor resource base
but they are economically developed. - Historical experiences of the people: The history of colonisation reveals that rich resources in colonies were the main attractions for the foreign invaders. It was primarily the higher level of technological development of the colonising countries that helped them to exploit resources of other regions and establish their supremacy over the colonies
What do you understand by ‘conservation of resources’? Why is it necessary to conserve our resources? Give three reasons.
Conservation is judicious and planned use of natural resources for sustainable benefit to the present generation. It also maintains a potential to meet the needs and aspirations of future generations.
Three reasons for conservation:
- Our resources are limited in nature, therefore they have to be used wisely.
- Resources are vital for any developmental activity.
- Their conservation is necessary for our own sustenance and for the ongoing economic developmental processes.
- Irrational consumption and over-utilisation of resources may lead to
socio-economic and environmental problems.
Explain the concept of resource conservation as voiced by Gandhiji.
Or
Whom did Gandhiji make responsible for the depletion of resources at the global level?
Gandhiji voiced his concern about resource conservation in these Words: “There is enough far everybody’s need and not for anybody’s greed.” He placed the greedy and selfish individuals as the root cause for resource depletion at the global level. He was against ‘mass production’ and wanted to replace it with ‘production by the masses’.
- Indiscriminate use of resources by human beings has led to the depletion of resources for satisfying the greed of few individuals.
- Irrational consumption and over-utilization of resources leads to socio-economic and environmental problems.
What had happened in the Club of Rome advocation of resource conservation
- At the international level, the Club of Rome
advocated resource conservation for the first
time in a more systematic way in 1968. - In 1974, Gandhian philosophy was once again presented by Schumacher in his book Small is Beautiful.
- The seminal contribution with respect to resource
conservation at the global level was made
by the Brundtland Commission Report, 1987.
This report introduced the concept of
‘Sustainable Development’ and advocated
it as a means for resource conservation,
which was subsequently published in a book
entitled Our Common Future. - [No need for this point] Another significant contribution was made at the Earth Summit at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 1992.
Write four institutional efforts made at global level for ‘resource conservation’.
- At the international level, the Club of Rome advocated resource conservation for the first time in a more systematic way in 1968.
- In 1974, the Gandhian Philosophy was presented once again by Schumacher in his book “Small is Beautiful”.
- Brundtland Commission Report in 1987, introduced the concept of ‘sustainable development’ and advocated it as a means for resource conservation. This was subsequently published in a book entitled “Our Common Future”.
- In June 1992, the first ‘International Earth Summit’ was held in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, in which 100 heads of States met for addressing urgent problems of environmental protection and socio-economic development at the global level.
Name three main relief features of India and write the importance of each.
- Plains (43%):
(i) provide facilities for agriculture.
(ii) provide facilities for industrial development.
(iii) because of their level, nature and ease of construction, plains support huge population of the country. - Mountains (30%):
(i) ensure perennial flow of some rivers and many rivers rise from them.
(ii) provide facilities for tourism.
(iii) are important from ecological point of view, e.g. have lot of forest wealth and wildlife. - Plateaus (27%):
(i) possess rich reserves of minerals.
(ii) contain lot of fossil fuels, especially coal.
(iii) possess rich forest cover.
How is land utilized?
- Forests
- Land not available for cultivation
(a) Barren and waste land
(b) Land put to non-agricultural uses, e.g.
buildings, roads, factories, etc. - Other uncultivated land (excluding
fallow land)
(a) Permanent pastures and grazing land,
(b) Land under miscellaneous tree crops
groves (not included in net sown area),
(c) Cultruable waste land (left uncultivated
for more than 5 agricultural years). - Fallow lands
(a) Current fallow-(left without cultivation for
one or less than one agricultural year),
(b) Other than current fallow-(left
uncultivated for the past 1 to 5
agricultural years). - Net sown area
Area sown more than once in an
agricultural year plus net sown area is
known as gross cropped area.
What factors does land use pattern depend upon?
The use of land is determined both by physical
factors such as topography, climate, soil types
as well as human factors such as population
density, technological capability and culture
and traditions etc.
How have technical and economic development led to more consumption of
resources?
- Technology has led to the development of various types of industries which led to increase in use of resources.
- Goods become outdated very fast and development of advanced goods with the latest technology requires more resources.
- Increase in population and improvement in medical facilities has also increased demands for more resources.
- Economic development provides favorable environment for the development of latest technologies which helps to convert into resources.
- The economic development leads to the rise of the needs of people which results into more consumption of resources.
“The pattern of net sown area varies greatly from one state to another.” Justify
- Punjab and Haryana are two states, which have more than 80% of their total area as N.S.A. (Net Sown Area) because:
- They are agriculturally rich States because of favourable climatic conditions for the growth of crops and levelled fertile nature of land.
- Irrigation facilities are well-developed here.
- States with low N.S.A. i.e., less than 10% are Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram because:
- The nature of land is hilly and forested, therefore availability of arable land is less.
- Economic backwardness and climatic conditions also do not encourage large scale agricultural activities.
Factors leading to land degradation.
- Deforestation – This leads to soil erosion and land degradation because deforestation leaves the soil bare and prone to erosion by wind and water, and the fertility of the soil is also lost due to human activities. eg: Jharkhand, Chhattishgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha.
- Over Irrigation- Due to over irrigation is responsible for land degradation due to water logging leading to increase in salinity and alkalinity in the soil. eg: Punjab, Haryana, Western Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra
- Over Mining – The mineral processing like grinding of limestone for cement industry and calcite ad soapstone for ceramic industry generate huge quantity of dust in the atmosphere. It retards the process of infiltration of water into the soil after it settles down on the land.
4 Over Grazing – This leads to increase in trampling of soil by livestock, which increases soil compaction and thus, decreases the permeability of soil which increases the runoff and soil erosion. eg: Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra
Measures to solve Land degradation
- Afforestation and proper management of grazing can help to some extent.
- Planting of shelter belts of plants, control on over grazing, stabilization of sand dunes by growing thorny bush are some of the methods to check land
degradation in arid areas. - Proper management of waste lands, control of mining activities, proper discharge and disposal of industrial effluents and wastes after treatment can reduce land and water degradation in industrial and suburban areas.
Write the main factors responsible for soil formation.
Soil is a living system. It takes millions of years to form soil up to a few centimeters in depth.
Factors responsible for soil formation are:
- Parent rock or bed rock on which the soils are formed, disintegrate and decompose under the process of weathering and erosion.
- Climate: It determines the rate of weathering.
- Relief, vegetation, other forms of life and time are other important factors in the formation of soils.
- Various forces of nature such as change in temperature, actions of running water, wind and glaciers, activities of decomposers etc. also contribute to the formation of soil.
- Chemical and organic changes which take place in soil, also play a role in its formation.
Explain land use pattern in India and why the land has under forest not increased much since 1960-61.
(a) Land resources in India are primarily divided into agricultural land, forest land, land meant for pasture and grazing, and waste land.
(b) Waste land includes rocky, arid and desert areas, and land used for other non-agricultural purposes such as housing, roads and industry.
(c) According to the recent data, about 54% of the total land area is cultivable or fallow, 22.78% is covered by forests, and 3.38% is used for grazing. The rest is waste land, with traces of miscellaneous cultivation.
(d) The land under forest has not increased since 1960–61 because in the post-independence era demand for more land to expand agriculture, mainly
after Green Revolution, developmental works and infrastructural facilities, led to clearance of forests areas.
(e) Industrialisation and urbanisation also decreased the forest area. Thus, land under forest has increased by only about 4% since 1960-61.
What type of soil is found in the river deltas of the eastern coast? Give three main features of this type of soil?
- Alluvial soil.
- It consists of various proportions of sand, silt and clay.
- As we move inlands towards the river valleys, soil particles appear somewhat bigger in size.
- In the upper reaches of the river valley i.e. near the place of the break of slope, the soils are coarse.
- Such soils are more common in piedmont plains such as Duars, Chos and Terai.
Classify alluvial soils on the basis of their age. Write two characteristics of each.
- According to their age alluvial soils can be classified as old alluvial (Bangar) and new alluvial (Khadar).
- The Bangar soil has higher concentration of kanker nodules than the Khadar.
- It has more fine particles and is more fertile than the bangar.
What is regur soil? Write its two features. Mention any two regions where regur soil is found.
- Black Soil
- Black soil is ideal for growing cotton and is also known as black cotton soil.
- It is believed that climatic condition along with the parent rock materials are the important factors for the formation of black soil.
- Plateaus of Maharashtra, Saurashtra, Malwa, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh and extend in the south east direction along the Godavari and the Krishna valleys.
More points:
- The black soils are made up of extremely
fine i.e. clayey material.
- They are well-known for their capacity to hold moisture. In addition, they are rich in soil nutrients, such as calcium carbonate, magnesium, potash and lime.
- These soils are generally poor in phosphoric contents.
- They develop deep cracks during hot weather,
which helps in the proper aeration of the soil.
Describe the features of Red - Yellow soil and Laterite soils. Mention the places where they are found in India.
- Red soil develops on crystalline igneous rocks in areas of low rainfall in the eastern and southern parts of the Deccan plateau.
- These soils develop a reddish colour due to diffusion of iron in crystalline and metamorphic rocks.
- It looks yellow when it occurs in a hydrated form.
- Yellow and red soils are also found in parts of Odisha, Chhattisgarh, southern parts of the middle Ganga plain and along the piedmont zone of the Western Ghats
Explain three types of soil erosion mostly observed in India.
- The running water cuts through the clayey soils and makes deep channels as gullies.
- Sometimes water flows as a sheet over large areas down a slope. In such cases the top soil is washed away. This is known as sheet erosion.
- Wind blows loose soil off flat or sloping land known as wind erosion
Mention methods to prevent soil erosion.
- Ploughing along the contour lines can decelerate the flow of water down the slopes. This is called contour ploughing.
- Steps can be cut out on the slopes making terraces. Terrace cultivation restricts erosion. Western and central Himalayas have well developed terrace farming.
- Large fields can be divided into strips. Strips of grass are left to grow between the crops. This breaks up the force of the wind. This method is known as strip cropping.
- Planting lines of trees to create shelter also works in a similar way. Rows of such trees are called shelter belts. These shelter belts have contributed significantly to the stabilisation of sand dunes and in stabilising the desert in western India.
