Renewable and Nonrenewable Resources

Natural Resources
 Renewable and Nonrenewable Resources

• All natural resources can be described as either renewable or

nonrenewable

Renewable resource – a resource that can be made again by nature or by

people in a practical amount of time

Nonrenewable resource – a resource that takes too long to replace or

cannot be replaced at all
 Renewable and Nonrenewable Resources

• Renewable resources Nonrenewable resources

 Renewable and Nonrenewable Resources
Scarce – hard to find

• Sometimes renewable resources become scarce when they are overused by

humans
• Fresh water replaces itself through the water cycle, but if humans use too much
fresh water before it can be renewed through the water cycle, then it will
become scarce
• Trees can also suffer from overuse and become scarce if they are not replanted
after being cut down or clear-cut
 Renewable and Nonrenewable Resources

Conservation – the act of keep something from being lost or wasted

• When we conserve our resources we are making sure that we only use
them for reasons of necessity
• Examples: planting new trees to replace the ones that were cut down,
using less water to allow the water cycle to recover
 Renewable and Nonrenewable Resources

Recycling – a process designed to recover and reuse materials instead of

throwing them away

•Recycling examples:
 Renewable and Nonrenewable Resources

• Cool Items made from

• recycled materials:
• Why is it important to use natural resources
wisely?
(pg.43)
 Renewable and Nonrenewable Resources
• The best way to make our natural resources last as long as we
need them is to try and find alternate resources that are
underutilized
• Solar, Wind, and Water are all examples of underutilized resources
• We can use these natural resources to create electricity and we
can stop using the fossil fuels and natural gases to conserve them
• How are the Sun, the wind, and the tides used
as an energy source?
 Terms to Know

How do groups that lack

natural resources meet
their needs?