Natural resources of the world are all components of animate and inanimate nature accessible to man, which he has the ability to use to satisfy his needs and needs in the production process and life. Located on the surface of the Earth’s shell, they impress with their quantity and variety. So far, it is believed that planet Earth is the only place in the universe suitable for human life. Today, the world's natural resources are the foundation of the economy and world production. The number of people using the benefits of the planet confirms this.
Significant significance in the life of modern mankind made to streamline the world's natural resources. All of them are divided into two types.
Classification
1. Exhaustible. These are natural goods, the demand for which exceeds the rate of their formation. Since requests are regularly received from the production side, sooner or later the moment comes when the reserves of this natural resource are completely depleted. But is this situation hopeless? Fortunately, no, because exhaustible reserves, in turn, are divided into:
- renewable;
- non-renewable.
Renewable reserves of the world's natural resources imply that they can be used almost indefinitely, however, it is important to provide the necessary time for their renewal, otherwise they will turn into non-renewable. The first include the purity of air, water and soil, as well as vegetation and wildlife.
Non-renewable resources arise as a result of various ore formation processes that occur in the upper layers of the earth's crust. Demand for such minerals is hundreds of times higher than their expected amount, and since their reserves are negligible compared to consumption, the chances of their renewal are zero. These include the mineral reserves of the planet.
2. Inexhaustible. These are all those that are abundant in almost every inhabitant of the Earth: air, water, wind energy, tides. They are so familiar to everyone that sometimes they simply cease to be valued, but without these resources, human life would become impossible.
Classification of natural reserves by their uses
People actively use all types of natural resources of the world in two main directions:
- agricultural sector;
- industrial production.
Agricultural resources combine all types of natural resources that are aimed at creating agricultural products and making a profit. For example, agroclimatic reserves provide an opportunity for the cultivation and further consumption of various cultivated plants and livestock grazing. Without water, it is generally impossible to imagine the proper functioning of rural industry. Here it plays a key role, as it is used for irrigation of grain and other crops, as well as for livestock watering. Fortunately, most of the natural resources used in this area are inexhaustible (water, soil, air).
High demand for minerals
Industrial production has its own system of consumption of world reserves. The number of plants, factories and enterprises today has reached its maximum. To meet their demand, a wide variety of tools are needed. In the modern world, the greatest need exists for combustible minerals. They also have the greatest financial value. These are oil, gas, coal and bitumen (refer to energy reserves).
Some species
The group of useful natural resources also includes forest, land and water. Although they are not energy, they are all valuable because they contribute to the expansion of industrial activity. They are also actively used in the construction industry.
Inexhaustible water resources
Most scientists agree that the oceans are full of useful reserves for humanity. This is a huge pantry of salts, minerals and much more. It is generally accepted that the seas and oceans contain no less natural goods than all the land together. Take, for example, sea water. For every inhabitant of the Earth there are almost three hundred million cubic meters of this salty life-giving moisture. And these are not just dry numbers. One cubic meter of salty sea liquid contains a huge amount of salt (table), magnesium, potassium and bromine. It is noteworthy that even gold is present in the chemical composition of water. She is truly precious! In addition, it serves as a continuous source for the extraction of iodine.
But the seas and oceans are rich not only in water. Countless useful mineral resources are mined from the bottom of the oceans. It is well known that of all the most important are oil and gas. Black gold is mined mainly from continental shelves. Gas also accounts for about ninety percent of the natural reserves that are extracted from the seabed.
But not only this is a value for world industry. The main wealth of deep-sea deposits are ferromanganese nodules. These amazing materials that form at great depths can contain up to thirty different metals! The first attempt to get them from the seabed was made by the United States of America in the seventies. The object of research, they chose the waters of the Hawaiian Islands.
Geographical distribution of natural goods on the surface of the Earth
The geography of the world's natural resources is quite diverse. Recent facts have confirmed that countries such as the United States of America, India, Russia and China use land most efficiently. Huge areas for arable land and tillage enable these countries to fully utilize the land reserves of nature. If we talk about mineral springs, then their distribution is not completely uniform. Ores are mainly located in central and eastern parts of Europe.
The largest oil fields are in the depths of the North Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Russia and China also have large stocks of this good. Unfortunately, the world's natural resources are running out quickly. For mankind, the point of no return is becoming more and more real.
Problems and prospects associated with the use of natural reserves
The environment is a complex and not fully understood world. People only slightly opened the veil of secrets and mysteries of the only "living" planet. From the dawn of human history, they tried to subdue the elements of nature for their own benefit. As you can see, man has always had a significant impact on the ecological state of the Earth. Over time, it intensified. New technologies and scientific progress have played a fundamental role in this. Unfortunately, human invasion of nature has caused problems of the world's natural resources.
New Opportunities for Humanity
In the first centuries, the inexhaustible biological resources of nature were used more, but now, in the age of progress, people penetrated the seabed, deep into the mountain ranges and drilled wells tens of meters into the earth. This made it possible to find hitherto inaccessible natural resources. People have carefully studied the components of the natural environment. Minerals, ore and coal deposits have opened the door to the use of powerful energy.
Fatal errors
However, along with high scientific and technical achievements, serious environmental problems appeared. And, unfortunately, the human hand is to a large extent to blame for this. His vigorous activity has become the main cause of problems associated with natural resources. Recently, the word "ecology" has begun to sound more and more often. Everyone wants to drink clean water, breathe clean fresh air and not get sick, but few people think that this requires the conscious efforts of everyone.
Indeed, over the years of human life on Earth, the useful components of the natural environment have declined significantly, and environmental pollution has reached its peak. If we talk about the state of the atmosphere, then its secular shell has become so thin that it could soon provoke an ecological catastrophe. The reason for this was uncontrolled waste emissions due to the robots of industrial enterprises. Toxic fumes and harmful gases inflict severe blows to the state of the biosphere.
Water is also not in the best condition. There are very few rivers left on the planet that would be free from pollution and debris. Together with sewage, a huge amount of pesticides and other fertilizers get into them. Most sewers and drainage canals also lead their polluted waters to rivers and seas. This provokes the rapid growth of mud - algae that harm the river flora and fauna. Every week, thousands of cubic meters of “dead” moisture fall into the oceans. Nitrates and other poisons are increasingly seeping into the ground and groundwater.
People trying to fix something.
Most leading countries have adopted laws to preserve the environment, but the threat of complete environmental pollution has not become less relevant.
The eternal confrontation between industrial companies and representatives of the Greenpeace international organization gives only temporary results. The second place in terms of pollution (after the atmosphere) is occupied by the water of the World Ocean. It has the property of self-cleaning, but in reality this process does not have time to achieve its goal. The accumulation of garbage in the waters causes the mass extinction of many species of animals.
Oil production from the bottom of the ocean is often unsuccessful, resulting in huge oil stains on the surface of the water surface. Their oily structure does not allow oxygen to pass through and millions of living creatures living in the sea do not have the opportunity to saturate their bodies with clean air.
