naturalresource

Natural resources are materials or components in the natural environment that are valuable or useful to humans. They can be obtained from soil, water, air, and living ecosystems and are used for energy, materials, food, and ecological services. They are commonly classified by renewability and by sector.

Renewable resources replenish naturally on human timescales, such as solar radiation, wind, hydropower, biomass, forests, and fisheries. Non-renewable resources are finite, formed over geologic time and consumed faster than they are formed, including fossil fuels, minerals, metals, and depleted groundwater.

Natural resources underlie economies, livelihoods, and cultures. They provide material goods and ecosystem services such as climate regulation, water purification, pollination, soil formation, and recreational value. Resource economics studies scarcity, allocation, pricing, and sustainable use.

Management and sustainability aim to balance extraction with regeneration and ecosystem health. Policy tools include property rights, regulation, taxes or royalties, conservation programs, technology, and international agreements. Overexploitation can lead to depletion, habitat loss, pollution, and conflict.

Challenges include market failures and externalities, climate change, and geopolitical competition. Trends emphasize the energy transition, circular economy, sustainable extraction, better data, and transparent governance.