UZOMA, EVAN IFEOMA (Ph.

D)
DEPARTMENT OF GEOGRAPHY, UNIVERSITY OF UYO.

THE CONCEPT OF RESOURCES

The concept of resources has been applied in diverse realms, with respect to Geography,

Economics, Biology and Ecology, Computer Science, Management, and Human Resources,

and is linked to the concepts of competition, sustainability, conservation, and stewardship. In

application within human society, commercial or non-commercial factors require resource

allocation through resource management (Miller and Spoolman, 2011).

In Geography, a resource has been defined as those things which are endowed by nature,

which are of great value to man (Iwena, 2013). It is any physical material that constitutes part

of the earth and which people need and value (Association of American Geographers, 1984).

A resource is any naturally occurring, exploitable material that society perceives to be useful

to its economic and material well being (Getis et al, 2011). The geographically informed

person must understand that a "resource" is a cultural concept. A resource is any physical

material constituting part of Earth that people need and value. Natural materials become

resources when humans value them (Getis et al, 2011). The uses and values of resources

change from culture to culture and from time to time. Resources are spatially distributed

varying in quantity and quality. Some resources are finite, while others can be replenished at

varying rates. Everything available in our environment which can be used to satisfy our

needs, provided, it is technologically accessible, economically feasible and culturally

acceptable can be termed as ‘Resource’.

In Economics, a resource is defined as a service or other asset used to produce goods

and services that meet human needs and wants (McConnell, Brue and Flynn, 2011).

Economics itself has been defined as the study of how society manages its scarce resources.

(Mankiw, 2008). Classical economics recognizes three categories of resources, also referred
to as factors of production: land, labour, and capital. (Samuelson and Nordhaus, 2004). Land

includes all natural resources and is viewed as both the site of production and the source of

raw materials. Labour or human resources consist of human effort provided in the creation of

products, paid in wage. Capital consists of human-made goods or means of production

(machinery, buildings, and other infrastructure) used in the production of other goods and

services, paid in interest. The economic resource definition is human-centred

(anthropocentric). A resource is a source or supply from which benefit is produced. Typically

resources are materials, energy, services, staff, knowledge, or other assets that are

transformed to produce benefit and in the process may be consumed or made unavailable.

In Biology and Ecology, a resource is defined as a substance that is required by a

living organism for normal growth, maintenance, and reproduction. Resources, such as food,

water, or nesting sites, can be consumed by an organism and, as a result, become unavailable

to other organisms. For animals key resources include food, water, and territory. For plants

key resources include sunshine, nutrients, water, and a place to grow (Ricklef, 2005). The

biological or ecological resource definition is nature- centred (biocentric or ecocentric).

Natural resources which satisfy the material and spiritual needs of humans are the free

gifts of the nature. In other words, any material which is valuable and useful for humans is

called a resource. These resources include physical like land, water, soils and minerals;

biological living like vegetation, wildlife and fisheries. In fact every material has some utility

for human beings but its utilisation is possible on the availability of appropriate technology.

For example, for centuries, coal and petroleum were present below the earth’s surface, but the

technology for their utilisation has been developed recently. These materials turned into

resources only when they could be used. It is, therefore, human ability and need which create

resource value. From a human perspective a natural resource is anything obtained from the

environment to satisfy human needs and wants. (Miller and Spoolman, 2011) From a broader
biological or ecological perspective a resource satisfies the needs of a living organism

(Ricklef, 2005).

In Computer Science, a computer resource is any physical or virtual component of limited

availability within a computer or information management system. Computer resources

include means for input, processing, output, communication, and storage (Morley, 2010).

SCOPE OF RESOURCE

Resources have three main characteristics: utility, limited availability, and potential for

depletion or consumption. Resources have been variously categorized as biotic versus abiotic,

renewable versus non-renewable, and potential versus actual, along with more elaborate

classifications. The concept of resources cover a broad spectrum and these include:

Resources can be classified in several ways: one the bases of (i) renewability,

(ii) origin and (iii) utility.

RESOURCES
RENEWABILITY Renewable, Non Renewable, Cyclic
ORIGIN Biotic, Abiotic
UTILITY Energy Replenishable, Non
Replenishable
Raw materials Minerals, Vegetation, food

The objective of classification would primarily decide how we put a resource under a

particular category.

Resources can be categorized on the basis of origin:

(i) Biotic resources: - These resources include all living elements of the environment.

Forests and forest products, crops, birds, wildlife, fishes and other marine lives are the

examples of biotic resources. These resources reproduce and regenerate themselves, hence,

are renewable. Coal and mineral oil are also biotic resources but they are non-renewable.
(ii) Abiotic resources:- These resources include all non-living elements of the environment.

Land resources, water resources, air (atmospheric resources) and minerals resources e.g.,

iron, copper, gold, silver etc are abiotic resources. They are exhaustible and non-renewable

as they cannot be regenerated or reproduced (Getis et al, 2011).

(iii) Land resources:- Natural resources are derived from the environment . Many natural

resources are essential for human survival, while others are used for satisfying human desire.

Conservation is the management of natural resources with the goal of sustainability (Miller

and Spoolman, 2011) .

Natural resources are also categorized based on the stage of development:

(iv)Potential resources are known to exist and may be used in the future. For example,

petroleum may exist in many parts of India and Kuwait that have sedimentary rocks, but until

the time it is actually drilled out and put into use, it remains a potential resource. Potential

resources are the ones of which we have insufficient knowledge or we do not have the

technology to exploit them at present (Getis et al, 2011).

(v)Actual resources are those that have been surveyed, their quantity and quality determined,

and are being used in present times. For example, petroleum and natural gas is actively being

obtained from the Mumbai High Fields. The development of an actual resource, such as wood

processing depends upon the technology available and the cost involved. That part of the

actual resource that can be developed profitably with available technology is called a reserve

resource, while that part that cannot be developed profitably because of lack of technology is

called a stock resource. Actual resources are those resources whose location and quantity are

known and we have the technology to exploit and use them.

Natural resources can be categorized on the basis of renewability or exhaustibility:

fossils are included in this category. Since their rate of formation is extremely slow, they

cannot be replenished, once they are depleted. Out of these, the metallic minerals can be re-

used by recycling them, but coal and petroleum cannot be recycled (Ukpong, 2009).

(vii)Renewable resources, such as forests and fisheries, can be replenished or reproduced

relatively quickly. The highest rate at which a resource can be used sustainably is the

sustainable yield. Some resources, like sunlight, air, and wind, are called perpetual resources

because they are available continuously, though at a limited rate. Their quantity is not

affected by human consumption. Many renewable resources can be depleted by human use,

but may also be replenished, thus maintaining a flow. Some of these, like agricultural crops,

take a short time for renewal; others, like water, take a comparatively longer time, while still

others, like forests, take even longer (Ukpong, 2009).

Dependent upon the speed and quantity of consumption, over-consumption can lead to

depletion or total and everlasting destruction of a resource. Important examples are

agricultural areas, fish and other animals, forests, healthy water and soil, cultivated and

natural landscapes. Such conditionally renewable resources are sometimes classified as a

third kind of resource, or as a subtype of renewable resources. Conditionally renewable

resources are presently subject to excess human consumption and the only sustainable long

term use of such resources is within the so-called zero ecological footprint , wherein human

use less than the Earth's ecological capacity to regenerate.

Natural resources are also categorized based on distribution:

(viii)Ubiquitous resources are found everywhere (e.g., air, light, water).

ore, geothermal power).

On the basis of ownership, resources can be classified as:

(x) Individual Resources: These resources are owned privately by individuals. For example

farm land owned by farmers, urban people own plots, houses and other property.

(xi) Community Owned Resources: These resources are available to all the members of the

community. For example the village common land for grazing, burial, village ponds, public

parks, picnic spots, playgrounds are available to all the people living there.

(xii) National Resources: All the minerals, water resources, forests, wildlife, land within the

political boundaries and oceanic area up to 12 nautical miles (19.2 km) from the coast are

included in national resources, and

(xiii) International Resources: The oceanic resources outside 200 km of the Exclusive

Economic Zone belong to open ocean and no individual country can utilise these without the

agreement of international institutions.

Others include:

(xiv) Labour or human resources: it is the chief explorer and organiser of all resources

within an environment to achieve their maximum use (Association of American Geographer,

1984), the ability to coordinate the resources depends on knowledge and education, skills,

level of technology, political stability, climate, birth and death rate, infrastructure, migration

etc. In economics, labour or human resources refers to the human effort in production of

goods and rendering of services. Human resources can be defined in terms of skills, energy,

talent, abilities, or knowledge (Samuelson and Nordhaus, 2004). In a project management

defined in the project plan (Hut, 2008).

(xv)Tangible versus intangible resources: Whereas, tangible resources such as equipment

have actual physical existence, intangible resources such as corporate images, brands and

patents, and other intellectual property exist in abstraction (Berry, 2004).

REFERENCES

Berry, John. 2004. Tangible Strategies for Intangible Assets. McGraw-Hill. ISBN 978-
0071412865 .
Getis, A., Getis, J., Bjelland, M.D and Fellman, J.D (2011). Introduction to Geography.
(Thirteenth Edition). McGraw Hill Companies. New York. Pp 118-154.
Hut, PM (2008-09-07). "Getting and Estimating Resource Requirements - People"
.Pmhut.com. Retrieved 2012-01-02.
Mankiw, N.G. (2008). Principles of Economics, 5th ed. South-Western College Publishing,
Boston, MA. ISBN 1-111-39911-5 .
McConnell, C.R., S.L. Brue, and S.M. Flynn. (2011). Economics: principles, problems, and
policies, 19th ed. McGraw-Hill/Irwin, New York, NY. ISBN 0-07-351144-7 .
Miller, G.T., and S. Spoolman (2011). Living in the Environment: Principles, Connections,
and Solutions (17th ed.). Belmont, CA: Brooks-Cole. ISBN 0-538-73534-1 .
Samuelson, P.A. and W.D. Nordhaus. (2004). Economics, 18th ed. McGraw-Hill/Irwin,
Boston, MA. ISBN 0-07-287205-5.
Ukpong, I.E (2009). Environmental Resource Management and Evaluation. In: Ukpong, I.E
(eds). Perspectives on Environmental Management. Immaculate Publishers, Enugu. Pp 222-
227.