Natural Resource Basics: Theories

DEVS 504: ARTULADHAR, 2013

DEVS 504 UN IT 3 NAT RES BASICS, ART, 20131

NATURAL RESOURCE: BASICS



Basics:

What Is The Common Meaning Of

“Natural Resource” ???



Natural Resources = 2 Words….

Natural = Nature (Ecology)

Resource = Human Use (Economics)



Nature … Ecology… Biological Sciences

Resource… Economics… Social Sciences

Science = Fact, Evidence Based… EmpiricalNot Normative Or “Ought

To”



Natural Resource…..

“Is The Use Of Firewood By Chepangs For Their Livelihood As Forest Dwellers And Example Of ‘Natural Resource Use’ ???

Answer: “No”… Why ???



“Natural Resource” Always Implies:

A) Nation-state Or Higher Scale…

B) Global Capitalism & Markets …

Subsistence Use Is Not Natural Resource



History Of “Natural”….

50 Billion Years Ago (Bya): Cosmos15 Bya: Sun Created4.5 Bya: Earth Created1 Bya: Unicellular Life Created= “Nature” Without Man… “Natural ???”



1 Million Years Ago (Mya): Hominids1 Lakh Ya: Homo Sapiens Evolved10,000 Ya: Agricultural Revolution300 Ya: Industrial Revolution In FW60 Ya: Industrial Revolution In TW40 Ya: Global Environmental Response20 Ya: World Sustainable Development



When Did ‘Nature’ Become ‘Natural As Defined By Man’ Start ?

When And How Did ‘Resource’ Start ??



Until Start Of Ag Rev, 10 Kya, Human Beings Were Akin To Natural Animals In Terms Of Effect On Environment And Subject To Laws Of Nature…. I.E.

Environmental effects confined to local clearings near cave firesides,

Mastodons, or early woolly elephants extinct due to Stone Age Man hunting…



From 10kya, Ag Rev, there was food surplus to support greater human population than animals,

so classes other than farmers/hunters developed:



soldiers class to protect food from robbery,priests to intercede with gods to make sure

rains fell on time, kings to make sure their tribe was protected,artisans to make various products and

services, and ideology of religion and culture to facilitate

food parasitism from food producers.



Thus, Ag Rev, which started out 10kya globally, but continues to affect 67% in Nepal,

turned out to be more EFFICIENT means of Nature/Society relationship than Stone Age civilization,



i.e. the Earth increased in carrying capacity for human population from less than a world population of 1 million to 1 BILLION by late 1870s…



The Ag Rev of extra food production facilitated more efficient ways of human organization from

Stone Age Family Groups to Tribal Groupsto Village and Urban Settlements to Proto-Kingdoms to Nations to Empires….



Greater political organizational efficiency that facilitated greater human population density also meant greater environmental stress and environmental hit-back by Nature…



Mayas, Aztecs, Moenjo-Darro, Harappa civilization disappeared as their natural resource base: food, forest, rain, water collapsed….. but

Mayan Civilization

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-extremely accurate calendar- the coming of eclipses and the revolutions of Venus to an error of one day in 6,000 years.

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Population growth bumped into environmental constraints in the 5th centuryPopulation depended on a single crop: maize

In the early 6th century, the carrying capacity of the most productive local lands was exceeded.Farmers used more fragile parts of the ecosystem.Food production failed to keep pace with increasing

population. Mid 8th century, population reached its historic apex

Widespread deforestation, erosionHigh infant and adolescent mortality and malnutrition

A.D. 820-822, the Roy dynasty collapsed abruptly.

Easter Island

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But… human beings and civilization influenced by religion did not make the connection between human activity and environmental collapse,

it was all DIVINE ANGER, “daivi prakop” in some ways human need not , could not do anything but surrender….. “CARAVAN FILM”



The development of “Science” from Enlightenment or Renaissance in Europe where in the focus shifted from worlds of heaven and hell to this Earth and Man’s action changed all this…



People started to make connections between Man’s Action and Environmental Reaction, slowly by scientists and slowly to common people over centuries… THEN…



Then Came The Start Of Industrial Revolution, 300 Years Ago, About 1700 Ad….

Industrial Revolution Increased The Scale Of Production And Consumption To Global Scale, From Coal To Steel To Now Nokia…



Global Industrial Scale Production Meant “Economies Of Scale” I.E. Per Unit Cost Of Production Became So Cheap As To Be Accessible To Larger Mass Of People,

E.G. Chinese Jeans Pair Cheaper Than Tailor Price To Sow A Pair Of Trousers In Nepal



Result: This Greater Efficiency Of Production Meant More Humans Could Be Supported By Earth…

World Population Boomed From 1 Billion In 1800 To OVER 7 Billion In 2014!

This Is Good !!!!!! ???????



What About The “Hidden Cost Of Population Boom” ????

Environmental Collapse, Degradation, Regionally To Globally….

Social Inequity…. Nationally To Globally



Solution ?????

S U S T A I N A B L E D E V E L O P M E N T(More Later….)

Where Is “Natural Resource” In This ??



As Industrial Revolution (IR) increased in scale from FW to TW over the last 300 years, the wastes of these started to accumulate regionally and globally, and…..

Science that was used to make this IR possible also allowed to make Man to make their connection between Man’s IR and Environment Degradation and collapse, e.g. the IPCC, 2007



The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) of over 10 k top scientists of the world in 2007 ruled that global climate change was result of human pollution over last 300 years and current max pollution was led by US and Chinese economies….

If humans screwed up, they can fix it, so….



“Fixing environment” means:

1) Fixing natural resources from maximum exploitation to maximum efficient exploitation

2) Efficient exploitation means getting max output per unit of input: land, energy, capital etc

3) when input includes environment, we call it



3) “Environmental Economics”….

4) when inputs includes social equity, we call it “sustainable development”

So now to some key concepts of Ecology and Economics as they relate to Natural Resource



ECOLOGICAL CONCEPT OF SUSTAINABILITY

From Finance: The interest from a capital deposit can be used indefinitely without destroying the capital, i.e. sustainable

From biology/ecology: Living system “grow interest” every year on capital living mass called biomass



The annual “growth biomass” can be used without destroying the living capital biomass indefinitely.

How to find out this “sustainable Yield” ?



Resource Economics… follows laws of economics like supply and demand, and resource allocation etc by rational human beings, but…



To reduce environmental damage, and ensure sustainable natural resource use, INCORPORATE ENVIRONMENTAL COSTS, in a disciple called Environmental Economics,

Natural Resource Basics: Theories

Environment

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