Top 10 Most Important Natural Resources that we must Protect

earth 2

Are you thinking about packing your bags and shifting to some other planet? If yes then you can continue with the activities like deforestation, pollution, wastage of water and other activities that exert excess pressure on natural resources but if you are thinking about having a pleasant stay on earth then please watch-out and mind your actions. The gifts of nature that we are blessed with are our natural resources like water, air, soil, vitamins and minerals etc. We can never payback mother earth for her uncountable gifts but at least we can value them and preserve them as an obligation so that we can pass them on to our future generations. There are many ways to conserve the natural resources, all you need to do is to look at the resources you are using and limit your usage. Here are 10 most important resources that we must protect-

10. Coal
coal

One of the major sources of air pollution is coal. It is one of the most widely used fossil fuels as it is the cheapest of all. Thanks to many Bollywood movies we are aware about the earlier costs of coal. There was a time when coal was 1 rupee/kg, cheaper than a toffee nowadays. So this perk of being available at low cost has led to the fall in the peak of amount of availability of this fossil fuel and now we are only left with a reserve of less than 200 years. So people do ask yourself, are you climbing the right ladder?

9. HELIUM
helium
It might seem preposterous to you that helium, the light gas present in our atmosphere is also one of those resources that are almost disappearing. For all those people who are not interested in too much of scientific stuff, helium is that gas which keeps party balloons stuck to ceilings of your houses and party halls. Helium due to a very low melting point is a widely used gas in industrial processes and the studies show that we the monster beings will make all the reservoirs of this gas empty by 2020.

8. NATURAL GAS
natural gas
Natural gas which is made up of hydrocarbons, contains methane and is a multi-purpose gas as it is used for cooking and heating along with the generation of electricity. If this natural gas was a living being I would have said dude! You are being exploited. This gas carries a closer picture to that of oil but the benefit of using it is that it is much cleaner and user friendly fossil fuel than oil.

7. IRON
iron
Both iron and steel are currently used for many purposes but this tradition of using iron and steel is being continued since the ancient era. Earlier Iron was used in making tools and weapons as it provided extra strength, in-return providing the ancient people protection. Pig iron which is like a core component of various industries is made by heating elements like silica. The extensive and disproportional use of these resources in various processes has led to the addition of one more element in the vulnerability list.

6. MINERALS
minerals
Be honest guys, is it easy for you to survive without your phones or laptops even for a single day or I should be saying for a single minute? If yes then you already belong to that ascetic category and if no then my friend say thanks to rare earth minerals like scandium and terbium. These metals are used in almost all the devices from magnets and wind mills to the electric circuits of the mobile phones, leading to high demand and supply of these materials resulting in extensive use of such resources which we take from china due to the lack of information about the reserves. Disproportionate use of other minerals like Gypsum, bauxite, titanium and mica etc. is making earth a hollow ball.

5. OIL
oil
Oil is a non-renewable resource of energy. A non-renewable resource is that natural resource that takes millions of years to get replenished. Oil is one such resource and scarcity of this resource can yield disastrous results like large empty cavities of earth. Due to the use of oil in almost all the industrial processes and other processes and the discovery of new techniques of drilling earth and extracting oil has led to the registration of this resource in the red list that is, in the list of endangered resources. Researches show that we have only that much oil which we can use for almost 46 years and the matter that requires immediate attention is what will happen after 46 years? “Oil or no oil?”

4. FOREST
deforestation

Of course! Reckless cutting of trees, deforestation, clearing of forests to set up industries or malls and forest fires etc. all these things will yield nothing but depletion of forests. We say “Books are a man’s best friend” but the paper on which these books are written is made from trees only that provide us with oxygen and no best friend can help you in any way if you don’t have life, actually oxygen. Reforestation that is planting trees to recover the loss caused by deforestation is considered the best natural method to protect forests, which is the home to many wildlife species and protects them from getting depleted but again it is a very time consuming process

3. PHOSPHORUS
phos
Phosphate rock which is the main source of phosphate for us is found at three places mostly- China, Morocco and the US. This phosphate is the main constituent of all the chemical fertilizers and is the main source of all the food items that are grown. We can recycle phosphorus from animal waste but it is not cost-efficient at the scale that global agriculture requires and the researches are still being made. Reducing the consumption of meat is a great method of reducing phosphate wastage which, I am sure is a bad news for non-vegetarians who are concerned about nature.

2. SOIL
soil
Firstly let’s have a look at the scientific stuff. The basic composition of soil forms a tri-partite structure of horizon A, B and C along with the bedrock that contains gravels. Due to extensive use of harmful chemicals and pesticides, the fertility of humus rich soil keeps on getting depleted leading to reduced water holding capacity which results in infertility of soil and absolutely no crop production. Oh My God! All the foodies in the house, one more alert for all of us.

1. WATER
water
Earth- the watery planet will soon be called a dry planet due to our negligence and reluctance. There is only 2-2.5% of fresh water available for us out of which only 2.5% water is considered safe for drinking which means if you consider the total amount of water present on the earth to be a full bucket then only a mug full of water is available as fresh water to us and 2 spoons out of that mug is the potable water (water safe for drinking.) Decrease in the level of rainfall has also lead to decreased levels of ground water. A situation like “water-water everywhere but not a drop to drink.” is not far from us because obviously we don’t really give a damn about the thing which is available at every shop at the cost of rupees 20 only.

A humble request, please follow the policy of “live and let live” and start thinking about the sustainable development. Make this world a healthy and happy place to live

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