SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCE CLASS 10 NOTES

 

SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCE

 

Natural resource : Anything in the environment which can be used is called a natural resource.

Natural Resources includes total natural environment that support human life and contribute to the production of necessities and comforts to mankind. So natural resources are the components of atmosphere, hydrosphere and lithosphere.

 Types of Natural Resources: On the basis of abundance and availability, the natural resources are of two types:

(a) Inexhaustible: These are in plenty and cannot be exhausted by man’s consumption. For example; air, sand, clay etc. It gets affected by the over-population of mankind.

(b) Exhaustible: These are limited and can get exhausted over a period of time, i.e., coal, petroleum etc.

 Management of Natural Resources: A system of controlling the use of natural resources in such a way, as to avoid their wastage and to use them in the most effective way is called management of natural resources.

 We need to manage our natural resources because of the following reasons :

·         The resources of the earth are limited. Because of the rapid increase in human population,

the demand for resources is increasing day-by-day. The proper management can ensure that the natural resources are used judiciously, so that they fulfill the needs of present generation and also last for the generations to come. –

• ·         The proper management of natural resources takes into consideration long-term perspective (or view) and prevents their exploitation to hilt for short-term gains.
• ·         The proper management can ensure equitable distribution of natural resources so that all the people can benefit from the development of these resources.
• ·         The proper management will take into consideration the damage caused to the environment during the ‘extraction’ or ‘use’ of the natural resources and find ways and means to minimise this damage.

Conservation of Wildlife: It is very important to conserve wild-life to maintain the ecological balance in nature and to preserve the gene pool. Some of the measures (or steps) to be taken for the conservation of wildlife are given below:

• ·         Laws should be made to impose a total ban on the poaching (killing) or capturing of any animal or bird belonging to an endangered species.
• ·         The natural habitats of wild animals and birds should be preserved by establishing National Parks and Sanctuaries throughout the country.
• ·         The Government Department connected with the conservation of wildlife should conduct a periodic survey in all the forests, National parks and Sanctuaries to have knowledge of the population of all species of wild animals and birds.
• ·         Special attention should be paid to the conservation of endangered species of wild animals and birds to prevent their extinction altogether.
• ·         The unauthorized felling (cutting) of forest trees for timber trade and fuel-wood should be curbed (stopped) immediately.

 Forest and wild life conservation: Forests are biodiversity hot spots. Biodiversity of an area is the number of species of different life forms like bacteria, fungi, powering plants insects, birds, etc.

Hotspot means an area full of biological diversity. Loss of diversity may lead to a loss of ecological stability/ecological imbalance.

 Stake holders: A person having interest or concern for something is called as a stakeholder.

Sustainable Management: Management of forest resources wisely to make it available for future generations.

Sustainable natural resource management demands the following:

• Using resources carefully because these are not unlimited.
• A long term perspective so that these resources will last for the generations to come and will not merely be exploited for short-term gains.
• Equitable distribution of resources so that all and not just a handful of rich and powerful people, benefit from the development of these resources.
• Checking the damage caused to the environment while these resources are either extracted or used,
• Planning for the safe disposal of the waste which is generated when natural resources are either extracted or used.

Conservation of forests: It is carried out by the following methods

• ·         Afforestation: It is growing of forests on unprotected barren lands. Van Mahotsava is a tree plantation movement carried out twice a year (February and July) by both government and voluntary agencies.
• ·         Reforestation: It is developing forest cover in the area which has been damaged or cleared during exploitation.
• ·         Separation of Commercial Forestry: Useful plants required by industry should be planted separately preferably on waste land. Growing industry required plants is called production plantation.
• ·         Grazing: Grazing should be regulated according to the availability of pasturage.
• ·         Deforestation: Removal, decreases or deterioration of forest cover of an area is called deforestation.

 Effects of Deforestation

• ·         Soil Erosion: Removal of plant cover exposes the fertile soil to wind and water. The latter remove the top soil and make the area infertile.
• ·         Desertification: Removal of forest cover in the plains makes the area dry. In hot season, the soil becomes loose. Air currents take away the fine soil particles leaving behind sand.
• ·         Floods: In rainy season many temporary rivulets are formed due to loss of absorption capacity by unprotected soil. The rivulets produce floods in low land causing loss to agriculture, property and life.
• ·         Destruction of wildlife: Deforestation leads to destruction of natural habitats of wild animals and plants. Wildlife is, therefore, destroyed.
• ·         Climatic Changes: In the absence of forest cover, the summer becomes hotter while the winters become extra cool. The frequency of rainfall decreases.

 National Award for Wildlife Conservation: The Govt, of India, has recently instituted an ‘Amrita Devi Bishnoi National Award for wildlife conservation in the memory of Amrita Devi, who in 1931 sacrificed her life along with 363 other for the protection ‘Khejri Trees’ in Kherali Village near Jodhpur in Rajasthan.

 Chipko Andolan: Movement originated in Garhwal in early 1970’s that was the result of a grassroot level effort to end the alienation of people from their forest.

Thus, Chipko Movement (i.e., chipko Andolan) is the tree hugging movement, in which the villagers compel the axeman to stop tree felling by embracing and forming ring (circle) around the marked trees.

Role of Chipko Andolan :

·         It helped in conservation and preservation of forests, one of the most important natural resources.

·         It allowed the village communities to utilise the forest produce and allowing the resource to replenish over time.

·         It taught people that, the destruction of forests not only affects the availability of forest products but also the quality of soil and the sources of water.

·         It forced government to rethink the priorities of the local people (to whom the forests belong) in the use of forest produce.

·         It encouraged the participation of the local people in the efficient management of forests.

Example : Protection of Sal Forest in West Bengal in 1972.

 silviculture

A programme called “silviculture” was started to replenish the forest resource, so as to meet the diverse needs of living beings. advantage of this initiative are:

(a) It maintains a perfect water cycle in nature
(b) It prevents soil erosion.
(c) It produces a large quantity of raw materials for industry

Wildlife

Wildlife refers to living beings comprising of animals, plants and microorganisms found in natural habitats which are neither cultivated nor domesticated.
It is threatened due to a high degree of exploitation and human interference like-

• ·         Habitat destruction
• ·         Over exploitation
• ·         Hunting

There is a large number of plants and animals that are facing exploitation and a risk of extinction. These species are called endangered species.

 Wildlife conservation

Conservation can be done by following methods-

·         Maintenance of wildlife in protected areas: it is done by maintaining the following-

·         National parks- a protected area where cultivation, grazing, hunting, etc. are not allowed. For example- Jim Corbett National Park.

·         Sanctuaries- They are the protected areas where hunting is not allowed but all other activities are allowed.

·         Biosphere reserve- A protected area meant for conservation of wildlife, traditional lifestyle of tribals and their domesticated animals.

·         Protection of their natural habitat.

·         Protection through legislation- There are a number of wildlife acts like :

·         IBWL ( indian board of wildlife), 1952.

·         Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.

·         MAB (Man And Biosphere Programme), 1971.

 

Water as a Resource

Water is a basic necessity for all terrestrial forms of life. Regions of water scarcity are closely

related to the regions of acute poverty. Failure to sustain water availability has resulted in loss of vegetation cover, diversion for high water demanding crops and pollution from industries and, urban wastes and less rain. Irrigation methods like dams, tanks should be used in various part of India.

The reason due to which we fail to sustain underwater availability are as follows-

• ·         Loss of vegetation cover.
• ·         Diversion for high water demanding crops.
• ·         Pollution from industrial effluents and urban waste.
• ·         Irrigation methods like dams, tanks and canals.

 Dams

Dams are large water bodies that are built by government agencies across the rivers to regulate the flow of water and generate electricity.

 Advantages of Dams

·         Water from a dam is used for irrigation in fields through a network of canals. Dams ensure round the year water supply to the crop fields and help raise agricultural production.

·         Water from a dam is supplied to the people in towns and cities through pipelines after suitable treatment. In this way, construction of dams ensures continuous water supply in the region.

·         The falling water (or flowing water) from the dam is used for generating electricity. The water rushing down the dam turns turbines which run electric generators.

 Disadvantages of Dams

• ·         Social Problems: Due to the construction of high-rise dams, a large number of human settlements (or villages) are submerged in the water of large reservoir formed by the dam and many people are rendered homeless. This creates a social problem.
• ·         Environmental Problems: The construction of high-rise dams on the rivers contributes to deforestation and loss of biodiversity. This is because a vast variety of flora and fauna (plants and animals) get submerged in the water of large reservoir formed by the dam and disturb the ecological balance.
• ·         Economic Problems: Some people say that the construction of high-rise dams involves the spending of a huge amount of public money without the generation of proportionate benefits.

·         Forests: Forests are important renewable natural resources dominated mainly by trees forming a sort of canopy, they are essential for the ecological balance of all ecosystems. They maintain the biological ecosystem.

 Water Harvesting: Aim is to develop primary resources of land and water and to produce secondary resources of plants and animals for use in a manner which will not cause ecological imbalance.

Various ancient methods of water harvesting

Methods	State
Khadin, tanks, nadis	Rajasthan
Banderas, tals	Maharashtra
Bundhis	Madhya Pradesh and U.P.
Pyhes and Pynes	Bihar
Kulhs	Himachal Pradesh
Ponds	Jammu Region
Eris (tanks)	Tamilnadu

It is capturing, collection and storage of rainwater and surface runoff for filling either small bodies or recharging ground water.

Benefits of water harvesting are as follows-

• ·         It ensures water availability.
• ·         It reduces the chances of flooding during the rainy season.
• ·         The groundwater is regularly recharged.

Khadin system: it is a traditional rainwater harvesting system for agriculture in Rajasthan. It consists of a very long earthen embankment down the slope of the catchment areas which helps in retaining run off water. A shallow well is often dug behind the embankment to store extra overflowing water. The stored water slowly percolates down into the ground. The area is then used for growing crops and for vegetation.

Watershed management

It acts as a raised area which is a source of runoff water to low lying areas and watershed management emphasis is the scientific method of soil and water conservation in order to increase biomass production. It actually aims at developing primary resources of land and water to produce secondary resources of plants and animals for use in a manner that will not cause ecological imbalance.

Advantage of watershed management are as follows-

• ·         Growing more trees in watershed areas, increasing the retention of more rain water and protection of soil from erosion.
• ·         It enhances productivity that increases the income of watershed community.
• ·         it reduces draughts and floods.
• ·         It increases the life of downstream dams and reservoirs because of less silting.