Types of Resources

We will discuss different types of resources in this post.

What is a Resource?

Everything that satisfies our needs and is present in nature is termed a resource.

Types of resources

How many types of resources are there? Basically, there are two types of resources: natural resources and human-made resources.

1. Natural resources – Natural resources are those resources which are available and obtained from the environment. For eg. Air, water etc.
2. Human-made resources – Resources developed by human beings.

 Classification of Resources

• A) based on origin – Biotic and Abiotic
• B) based on exhaustibility – Renewable and Non-Renewable
• C) based on ownership – Individual resources, community resources, National resources, International resources
• D) based on the status of development – stock, potential, developed, reserve

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 Based on Origin

1. Biotic – Biotic resources are those that possess life. E.g. – Human, flora and fauna.

2. Abiotic – Abiotic resources are non-living things as they do not contain life. E.g.- Rocks, Metals

Based on Exhaustibility

1. Renewable – They are those resources that can renew themselves again and again. E.g. – water, soil.

2. Non – Renewable – Non – Renewable resources are those resources that are available in a limited or small quantity. It takes thousands of years for them to replenish again. E.g. – minerals, fossil fuels.

Based on Ownership

1. Individual – those resources which are owned by individuals. E.g. – Farmers own land in villages, plots, and houses owned by people.

2. Community-owned – Resources that are accessible to all the members of the community. E.g. – parks, ponds, playgrounds.

3. National Resources – Resources belonging to or available in a nation are termed a national resource. Forests, rivers, mineral resources, land within the political boundary are examples.

4 . International Resources – There are international institutions that regulate some resources. E.g. – oceanic resources beyond 200 nautical miles of the Exclusive Economic Zone belong to the open ocean. No country can utilize these without the Permission of International institutions.

Based on the Status of Development

1. Potential Resources – Those resources which are not in use at present and their quantity is not known. E.g. – the western part of Rajasthan has potential for the development of wind and solar energy.

2. Developed Resources – Those resources whose quality and quantity are known.

3. Stock – Materials in the environment that have the potential to satisfy human Needs but humans do not have the appropriate technology to access these

4. Reserves – The Subset of stock. Can be achieved with the help of existing technology available to us. E.g. – water from big rivers can be used to generate Hydroelectric Power

Human-Made Resources

Human-made resources are those resources that are made by human beings with the help of available resources to make their life easy and comfortable. For example, petroleum is not available in its finished form. It is extracted with the help of technology and processed.

Humans As a Resource

Humans are the actual resources and make full use of the country’s available resources. But this can only be accomplished if humans have the knowledge and technology to access the resources. Education is the most significant factor which transforms a person into a valuable resource.

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