Classification of the

Natural Resources
Engr. Ruselle Andrew Manalang
Industrial Engineering Program Faculty

1
 Natural resources: vital to human survival
Natural resources = substances and energy sources needed for
survival

• Renewable resources:
– Available: sunlight, wind, wave energy
– Renew themselves over short periods: timber, water, soil
• These can be destroyed
• Nonrenewable resources: can be depleted
– Oil, coal, minerals3`2;ov bn
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 INEXHAUSTIBLE RESOURCES
• resources which are present in
unlimited quantity in nature.
• resources which do not get
exhausted or depleted by human
activities.
• also known as renewable
resources

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 What is a
Renewable Resource?
○ a resource which is replaced
naturally and can be used again.

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 Examples
• oxygen
• fresh water
• solar energy
• timber
• biomass

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 Examples
Water Resources
• Water is vital for sustaining life.
• Water is essential for agriculture, industries, generation
of power and transport.
• Water covers 70% of the earth's surface but only 3% of
this is fresh water.

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 Examples
Solar Resources
• The sun is the primary source of energy in our
lives (solar energy)
• Sun rays help plants to manufacture their food
and give off oxygen which we breathe in.
• The sun's energy evaporates water from oceans,
rivers and lake to form clouds that turn into rain.

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 Examples
Wind Energy
• used since ages for grinding grains, lifting water and
propelling ships.
• India is considered to be the third largest producer of
wind energy in the world.
• Wind power has low environmental impacts like bird
kills, noise, effect on TV reception etc.

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 Examples
Tidal and Wave Power
• These are small but inexhaustible resources.
• Tides moving into narrow areas like estuaries are suitable
for power generation.
• Turbines can produce electricity both during rising and
receding tides.

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 Examples
Tidal and Wave Power
• Wave Power converts the motion of waves into
electrical or mechanical energy.
• Electricity can be generated at sea and transmitted
by cables to land.
Clay Sand

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 What is a
Non-Renewable Resource?
• also called a finite resource
• a resource that does not renew itself at a sufficient rate
for sustainable economic extraction in meaningful
human time-frames.

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 Examples of
Non-Renewable Resource?
Fossil Fuels
• derived from organic matter which has
been trapped between layers of
sediments within the Earth for millions of
years.

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 Examples of
Non-Renewable Resource?
Crude Oil/Petroleum
• builds up in liquid form between the layers of
the Earth’s crust.

Gas
• Natural gasses gather below the Earth’s crust
and, like crude oil, must be drilled for and
pumped out.

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 Examples of
Non-Renewable Resource?
Coal
• created by compressed organic matter, it is solid
like rock and is obtained via mining.
Nuclear Fuels
• primarily obtained through the mining
and refining of uranium ore.

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 Types of Resources
• Nonrenewable resources can be extended
through more efficient use (cars use less
steel now, precious metals like gold are
mixed with other metals to form alloys to
extend their use).

• Substitution of materials (renewable in

place of the nonrenewable) also reduces
the demand for certain resources
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 • Recycling also extends supplies of
nonrenewable resources
• The only limit to recycling is the
relative costs of extracting new
resources compared with collecting
used materials
• New technology or methods also
expand the sources of
nonrenewable resources
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 • Renewable resources can
become exhausted if managed
badly.

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