lecture notes

1. We use things the Earth gives us to help us live
better lives
1
UGRC 143 : SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY IN OUR
LIVES
SECOND SEMESTER : 2014/2015 ACADEMIC YEAR
EARTH RESOURCES
Dr. Larry Pax Chegbeleh
Department of Earth Science
University of Ghana, Legon

2.  Purpose and Objectives of lesson
 Introduction
 Resources
 Earth resources
 Resources management
 The rock cycle, formation and
classification
2

3.  This lesson is to enable you
understand what resources are
and how to manage them for
sustainable livelihood
 It is expected that by the end of
the lesson you should be able to
…..
3

4.  Define resources in general and earth
resources in particular
 Identify various categories of resources
 Differentiate between resources and
reserves
 Define the types of rocks
 Explain the formation of the rock types
 State the major classifications of rocks
4

5.  To some extend you have
prior knowledge of what
resources are
 More understanding is
required to know their
differences 5

6.  All those things that are necessary or
important to human life and civilization
 A source or supply from which benefit is
derived or produced
 Any material that can be transformed to
produce benefit

7.  Typical examples include:
 Materials
 Knowledge
 Staff (Human resources) skills, energy, talent
and knowledge used for the production of
goods or rendering of services
 Services
 Energy
 Other things that are transformed to produce
benefit

8.  The benefit derived can be utilized/consumed
or made unavailable in the process
 Some of the benefits of using resources
include:
 Increase in wealth
 Meeting our needs
 Proper functioning of a system
 Enhancing well being

9.  We use resources to make things and to
grow things we need
Examples of things we use include:
 Water to drink and grow plants for food,
shelter, and clothing.
 Soil to grow plants for food, shelter, and
clothing.
 Rocks for building and jewelry.

10.  Metals to make cans, building parts, and
jewelry.
 Sand to make glass.
 Oil to make plastics and gasoline.

11.  Resources that are involved in or formed by
geologic processes
 From human point of view is anything
obtained from the environment to satisfy
human needs
 From ecological or biological view point is
anything that satisfies the needs of living
organisms

12. Examples of earth resources include
 Groundwater
 Soil
 Rocks
 Minerals
 Oil and gas

13. Earth resources are classified into various
categories based on:
 Source of origin
 Stage of development
 Renewability or replenishment

14. Based on origin, resources may categorized
into:
 Biotic: - these are obtained from the
biosphere (living and organic material)
▪ Examples: forests and animals and
materials that can be obtained from
them
▪ Coal and petroleum are formed from
decayed organic materials

15.  Abiotic: - these are those that come from
non-living and non-organic materials
▪ Examples include: air, fresh water, land,
minerals

16. Based on stage of development, resources may
categorized into:
 Potential resources: - these are those that
exist in an area or region and are
recoverable in the future
▪ Example: petroleum may occur in various
regions, until it is actually drilled out,
developed and put into use, it remains a
potential resource

17.  Actual resources: - these are those that that
have been investigated and quantified and
being used in present times
 Reserved resources: the part of an actual
resource that can be developed profitably
with available technology
 Stock resources: those that have been
investigated but can not be put to use due
to lack of technology

18.  Based on the time required to replace the
quantity of resources used (renewability) or
consumed, resources can be
Renewable
Nonrenewable
Inexhaustible (Perpetual resources)

19. Renewable Resources
Resources that can be replenished over fairly
short spans of time, such as months, years, or
decades (e.g., trees)
Can be replenished naturally
From human perspective, rate of replenishment
or recovery exceeds that of consumption
Can be depleted by human consumption

20. Nonrenewable Resources
Rate of consumption exceeds rate of
replenishment or recovery (time needed to
create >>> time needed to consume).
 Form slowly or do not naturally form in the
environment (may take millions of years to
form and accumulate)
E.g. fossil fuels (petroleum)

21. Inexhaustible Resources
These are available continuously
Their quantity is not affected by human
consumption
We shall never run out, like sunlight, air, and
wind
However it can be ruined by pollution.

22. Resources may also be categorized based on
distribution
Ubiquitous resources: these are found
everywhere in the world (e.g. air, light and
water)
Localized resources: these are found in
certain parts of the world or within certain
localities (e.g. Iron ore, copper ore and
geothermal power)

23. Exceptions
All earth resources, except
groundwater, are nonrenewable

24.  The more people on earth
oThe more water we consume
oThe more food we grow/eat
oThe more fuel we burn
oThe more minerals we use

25.  Rates of resources used even
increasing faster than rate of
population increase.
Why?

26. o Elevated standards of living.
o improvements in life-styles hence,
increasing quantities of
manufactured goods ( cars, clothes,
computers, etc.)