Biological, Forest, Agricultural, Livestock, and Water Resources
Biological Resources
These resources share a biological origin, and if managed rationally, can provide renewable materials.
Forest Resources
Forests provide resources and play a vital role in balancing the biosphere through:
- Soil conservation (protection against erosion, rain, and wind)
- Decaying material contributing to soil formation (humus)
- Oxygen release and carbon dioxide uptake
Forests provide materials such as:
- Wood: The primary structural material from trees, composed of cellulose and lignin (sugars). Used in construction, furniture, and as a raw material (paper, etc.). Wood used as fuel is a type of biomass.
- Cork and Resin
- Edible mushrooms, wild game, medicinal plants, and livestock fodder.
Agricultural Resources
These are products of farming activities. Agriculture encompasses techniques and practices for cultivating the earth, primarily for food production, but also for other purposes. Cereals, a major agricultural product, are a primary source of nutrients for humanity.
Livestock Resources
This activity involves raising and caring for animals. Developed countries often have intensive farms. Bred animals provide proteins from meat, milk, and eggs, as well as raw materials like leather and fur. Some animals are used for labor or transport.
Water Resources
Water is a vital resource with numerous applications, including metabolic processes in living beings, making it essential for life.
Impacts on Soil and the Biosphere
Desertification
Land degradation that destroys its ability to support plant, animal, or human life.
Deforestation
Forests are complex terrestrial ecosystems, important as a renewable resource for:
- Regulation
- Protection
- Study
- Recreation
Loss of Biodiversity
The variety of life forms on Earth, encompassing genetic diversity within species, species diversity, and ecosystem diversity. Causes include habitat destruction, degradation, and fragmentation; introduction of exotic species; extensive farming; climate change; and industrialization.
Limits of Economic Development
Since the Industrial Revolution, economic development has been viewed as beneficial. However, its long-term sustainability has been questioned, with concerns that the effort to maintain economic growth could lead to economic and social collapse.
Factors Impeding Economic Development
- Resource Depletion:
- Overexploitation of renewable resources, preventing renewal.
- Depletion of minerals and fossil fuels.
- Depletion of saline aquifers, arable land, increasing soil erosion, and desertification due to the need for increased food resources.
- Environmental Impacts:
- Air pollution
- Acid rain
- Ozone layer depletion
- Greenhouse effect
- Biodiversity loss
- Climate change
- Environmental Risks:
- Natural (geological, atmospheric, biological, etc.)
- Human-induced (industrial and technological, conflicts, forest fires, etc.)
- Social and Economic Factors:
- Unequal global resource distribution
- Unequal distribution of property and resource exploitation
Concept of Development
Development can be understood in three ways:
- Human Development: The ability to achieve well-being for oneself and those closest to them.
- Social Development: Improved quality of life and well-being for the general population.
- Economic Development: Acquisition of economic wealth in a region or country to improve the well-being of its inhabitants.
These aspects don’t necessarily develop together; human and social development can occur without economic development.
Development Models
These are systems for managing human activities based on different assumptions regarding:
- Exploitation of material resources
- Methods of creating and distributing goods
- Controlling the impacts of human actions
Uncontrolled Growth
Demographic and economic growth without regard for limiting factors, beginning with the Industrial Revolution. Characterized by:
- Prioritizing economic growth
- Promoting production, distribution, and consumption of natural products
- Lack of government regulation of the economy, based on the belief in self-regulation by market forces
- Downplaying the importance of environmental degradation
Sustainable Development
Emerging after 1980, this approach advocates growth that meets present needs without compromising the needs of future generations. It proposes policy measures in economics, biology, etc., aiming to:
- Reconcile economic and social growth with long-term preservation of natural resources and environmental quality
- Manage resources rationally through planning, increasing production efficiency, and moderating consumption for optimal use of non-renewable resources and preventing over-exploitation of renewable resources
- Consider not only economic costs but also broader environmental costs
- Distribute resources more equitably and meet population needs without reaching the consumption levels of industrial societies
- Promote environmental education and consider the needs of future populations
Sustainable Management
Based on the sustainable development model, it involves:
- Resource Management:
- Exploitation of renewable resources should not exceed their recovery rate.
- Exploitation of non-renewable resources should be slower than their replacement by renewable resources.
- Pollutant emissions should be below the environment’s capacity to absorb them.
- Waste Management:
- Reduce waste generation.
- Maximize product lifespan.
- Recycle materials.
- Control of Environmental Impacts:
- Environmental impact assessments
- Spatial planning and protected areas
- Proper waste management (landfill control, waste-to-energy plants, waste collection)
- Risk prevention and correction
- Alternative Production and Consumption: Alternatives to the traditional economy (Fair Trade, Ethical Banking, etc.)
International Initiatives
Growing awareness of environmental and development problems caused by resource exploitation and wealth distribution has led to the creation of international organizations (UNESCO, FAO, IMF, World Bank, Greenpeace, etc.) and international agreements, including the Rio Conference (1992), Kyoto Protocol (1997), and Millennium Summit (2000).