Study Material and Notes of Ch 1 Resources Class 8th Geography
Topics in the Chapter
• Resources
• Types of Resources
→ Natural Resources
→ Human Made Resources
→ Human Resources
• Conserving Resources
→ Resource Conservation
→ Sustainable Development
Resources
• Definition: Anything that can be used to satisfy a need is a resource.
• What makes a thing Resource
→ Utility or usability is what makes an object or substance a resource.
Example includes Water, textbook etc.
→ Some resources have economic value while some do not. Example: Metals
may have an economic value, a beautiful landscape may not. But both satisfy
human needs so these are considered as resource.
• Some resources can become economically valuable with time. Example:
Grandmother’s home remedies are not economically valuable today. But if
they are patented and sold by a medical firm tomorrow, they could become
economically valuable.
• Important factors that can change substances into resources:
→ Time
→ Technology
• People themselves are the most important resource. Their ideas, knowledge,
inventions and discoveries that lead to the creation of more resources.
• Each invention leads to many others. Example: The discovery of fire led to
the practice of cooking
and other processes while the invention of the wheel ultimately resulted in
development of newer modes of transport.
Types of Resources
• There are three types of resources:
→ Natural
→ Human made
→ Human
• Resources that are drawn from Nature and used without much modification
are called natural resources. For example: air, water, soil, minerals etc.
• The resources which are created from natural resources through human
resources are known as human made resources. For example:
buildings, bridges, roads etc.
• People are human resources. It refers to the quantity and abilities of the
people.
Natural Resources
• Many of natural resources are free gifts of nature.
• These can be used directly but in some cases we have to use tools and
technology may be
needed to use a natural resource to utilize it in best possible way.
• Natural resources are classified into different groups depending upon their
level of development and use;
→ Origin
→ Stock
→ distribution
• On the basis of their development and use resources it can be classified into
two groups:
→ Actual resources: Those resources whose quantity is known. These
resources are being used in the present. For Example: The dark soils of the
Deccan plateau in Maharashtra
→ Potential resources: Those whose entire quantity may not be known and
these are not being used at present. This is due to the present level of
technology is not advanced enough to easily utilise these resources. For
Example: The uranium found in Ladakh is a potential resource that could be
used in the future.
• Based on their origin it can be classified into two groups:
→ Abiotic resources: Non-living resources. Example includes Soil, Water, rocks
etc.
→ Biotic resources: Living resources. Exampl includes Plants and animals.
• On the basis of Stock:
→ Renewable resources: Those which get renewed or replenished quickly. For
example solar energy, soil, forest etc.
Some of these are unlimited and are not affected by human activities such as
solar or wind energy while careless use of certain renewable resources like
water, soil and forest can affect their stock.
→ Non-renewable resources: Those which have a limited stock. For example:
Coal, Petroleum etc.
Once the stocks are exhausted it may take thousands of years to be renewed
or replenished. Therefore, they are considered as non-renewable.
• On the basis of their distribution resources:
→ Ubiquitous: Resources that are found everywhere like the air we breathe,
are ubiquitous. For Example: air, water etc.
→ Localised: Resources that are found in only certain places are localised. For
Example: Copper, Iron Ore etc.
• The distribution of resources is unequal over earth and depends upon
number of physical factors like terrain, climate and altitude.
Human Made Resources
• Natural substances become resources only when their original form has
been changed. For Example: Iron ore was not a resource until people learnt to
extract iron from it.
• Technology is also a human made resource.
Human Resources
• People use the nature in the best possible way using their knowledge, skill
and the technology. Therefore, they considered as human resources.
• Education and health help in making people a valuable resource.
• Improving the quality of people’s skills so that they are able to create more
resources is known as human resource development.
Conserving Resources
• Using resources carefully and giving them time to get renewed is
called resource conservation.
• Sustainable development is the development meets the needs of present and
also conserve them for
the future.
• Principles of Sustainable development:
→ Respect and care for all forms of life
→ Improve the quality of human life
→ Conserve the earth’s vitality and diversity
→ Minimise the depletion of natural resources
→ Change personal attitude and practices toward the environment
→ Enable communities to care for their own environment.
• It is our duty to ensure that:
→ All uses of renewable resources are sustainable
→ The diversity of life on the earth is conserved
→ The damage to natural environmental system is minimised.
Glossary
• Patent: It means the exclusive right over any idea or invention.
• Technology: It is the application of latest knowledge and skill in doing or
making things.
• Stock of Resource: It is the amount of resources available for use.
• Sustainable Development: Carefully utilising resources so that besides
meeting the requirements
of the present, also takes care of future generations.