Introduction

Natural resources occur naturally within environments that exist relatively undisturbed by

humanity, in a natural form. A natural resource is often characterized by amounts

of biodiversity and geodiversity existent in various ecosystems.

Natural resources are derived from the environment. Some of them are essential for our survival

while most are used for satisfying our desires. Natural resources may be further classified in

different ways.

Natural resources are materials and components (something that can be used) that can be found

within the environment. Every man-made product is composed of natural resources (at its

fundamental level). A natural resource may exist as a separate entity such as fresh water, and air,

as well as a living organism such as a fish, or it may exist in an alternate form which must be

processed to obtain the resource such as metal ores, oil, and most forms of energy.

Classification

There are various methods of categorizing natural resources, these include source of origin, stage

of development, and by their renewability. These classifications are described below. On the

basis of origin, natural resources may be divided into:

Biotic – Biotic resources are obtained from the biosphere (living and organic material), such

as forests and animals, and the materials that can be obtained from them. Fossil fuels such

as coal and petroleum are also included in this category because they are formed from

decayed organic matter.

Abiotic – Abiotic resources are those that come from non-living, non-organic material.

Examples of abiotic resources include land, fresh water, air and heavy metals

including ores such as gold, iron, copper, silver, etc.

Sources of Water:

Rainwater, oceans, rivers, lakes, streams, ponds and springs are natural sources of water. Dams, wells, tube wells, hand-pumps, canals, etc, are man-made sources of water.

Rain Water: Rain water collects on the earth in the form of surface water and underground water. Surface Water: Water present on the surface of the earth in the form of oceans, rivers, lakes, ponds and

streams is called surface water. The water in rivers and lakes comes from rain and melting of snow on mountains. Rivers flow into the sea.

Underground Water: Some of the rainwater seeps through the soil on to the non-porous rocks below. This is

underground water. Sometimes due to high pressure, this water sprouts out in the form of springs. It can be obtained by digging wells, sinking tube wells, etc.

Water pollution is the contamination of water bodies

(e.g. lakes,rivers, oceans, aquifers and groundwater). This form of environmental

degradation occurs when pollutants are directly or indirectly discharged into water bodies

without adequate treatment to remove harmful compounds.

Water pollution affects the entire biosphere – plants and organisms living in these bodies

of water. In almost all cases the effect is damaging not only to individual species and

population, but also to the naturalbiological communities.

Reduce Water Pollution:

1.DO NOT pour fat from cooking or any other type of fat, oil, or grease down the sink. Keep a

“fat jar” under the sink to collect the fat and discard in the solid waste when full.

2.DO NOT dispose of household chemicals or cleaning agents down the sink or toilet. Simsbury

has a Hazardous Waste Collection day usually from 8:00 a.m to 1:00 p.m. at Henry James

School. Connecticut Resource Recovery Authority lists all collection dates.

3.DO NOT flush pills, liquid or powder medications or drugs down the toilet. For

recommendations on proper disposal for all types of medical wastes, visit the CT DEP

publication here.

4. Avoid using the toilet as a wastebasket. Most tissues, wrappers, dust cloths, and other paper

goods should be properly discarded in a wastebasket. The fiber reinforced cleaning products that

have become popular should never be discarded in the toilet.

5. Avoid using a garbage disposal. Keep solid wastes solid. Make a compost pile from

vegetable scraps.

6.Install a water efficient toilet. In the meantime, put a brick or 1/2 gal container in the standard

toilet tank to reduce water use per flush.

7. Use the minimum amount of detergent and/or bleach when you are washing clothes or dishes.

Use only phosphate free soaps and detergents.

9.Minimize the use of pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers. DO NOT dispose of these chemicals,

motor oil, or other automotive fluids into the sanitary sewer or storm sewer systems. Both of

them end at the river.

10.If your home has a sump pump or cellar drain, make certain it does not drain into the sanitary

sewer system. If you are unsure,

Uses Of Water: Water is one of the most vital natural resources for all life on Earth. The

availability and quality of water always have played an important part in determining not only

where people can live, but also their quality of life. Even though there always has been plenty of

fresh water on Earth, water has not always been available when and where it is needed, nor is it

always of suitable quality for all uses. Water must be considered as a finite resource that has

limits and boundaries to its availability and suitability for use

The Water-Use Cycle

Water is constantly in motion by way of the hydrologic cycle. Water evaporates as vapor from

oceans, lakes, and rivers; is transpired from plants; condenses in the air and falls as precipitation;

and then moves over and through the ground into waterbodies, where the cycle begins again. The

water-use cycle is composed of the water cycle with the added influence of human

activity.Dams, reservoirs, canals, aqueducts , withdrawal pipes in rivers, and groundwater wells

all reveal that humans have a major impact on the water cycle. In the water-use cycle, water

moves from a source to a point of use, and then to a point of disposition. The sources of water

are either surface water or groundwater. Water is withdrawn and moved from a source to a point

of use, such as an industry, restaurant, home, or farm. After water is used, it must be disposed of

(or sometimes, reused). Used water is either directly returned to the environment or passes

through a treatment processing plant before being returned.

Rainwater harvesting is the accumulation and deposition of rainwater for reuse on-site, rather

than allowing it to run off. Rainwater can be collected from rivers orroofs, and in many places

the water collected is redirected to a deep pit (well, shaft, or borehole), a reservoir with

percolation, or collected from dew or fog with nets or other tools. Its uses include water for

gardens, livestock, irrigation, domestic use with proper treatment, and indoor heating for houses

etc. The harvested water can also be used as drinking water, longer-term storage and for other

purposes such as ground water recharge.