Management of Natural Resources — 50 Q&A

Natural resources are materials and energy sources supplied by nature. They are classified as biotic (living — forests, animals) and abiotic (non-living — minerals, water), and as renewable (replenishable) and non-renewable (finite).

Management ensures sustainable use, prevents depletion, maintains ecosystem services (air, water, soil fertility), supports livelihoods and secures resources for future generations.

Watershed management involves managing land and water in a drainage basin to conserve soil and water, improve groundwater recharge, reduce erosion and support sustainable agriculture and livelihoods.

Techniques: rooftop harvesting, percolation pits, recharge wells, check dams, contour bunding, nala bunding, and recharge tanks — used to capture runoff and recharge groundwater.

Managing forests to meet current needs (timber, fuel, non-timber products) while preserving biodiversity, soil and water resources — through controlled harvesting, reforestation and community involvement.

Afforestation: planting trees on land not previously forested. Reforestation: replanting trees in degraded or deforested areas to restore forest cover.

NTFPs include fruits, nuts, honey, resins, medicinal plants, fodder and fibers — important for local livelihoods and sustainable forest economies when harvested responsibly.

Protected areas include national parks (strict protection), wildlife sanctuaries (protection of specific species with limited human use), biosphere reserves (conservation with sustainable use zones) and community conserved areas.

JFM is a partnership between local communities and forest departments to manage and protect forests. Benefits include local stewardship, reduced illegal exploitation and sharing of forest benefits.

Contour ploughing, terracing, check dams, planting cover crops, mulching and maintaining vegetation strips reduce runoff and prevent soil erosion, preserving fertility.

Rehabilitation includes soil and water conservation measures (check dams, bunds), afforestation, pasture improvement, community management and restoring natural drainage to improve groundwater and productivity.

Excessive pumping, inadequate recharge, and mismanagement cause falling water tables, dry wells, land subsidence, reduced water for ecosystems and increased extraction costs.

Sustainable mining includes planned extraction, land restoration (backfilling, re-vegetation), safe tailings disposal, pollution control, and community rehabilitation after mine closure.

Collected rooftop runoff is filtered and directed into percolation pits or recharge wells to infiltrate and replenish aquifers, reducing dependence on groundwater pumping.

Rotational grazing moves livestock between pastures to allow vegetation recovery, prevent overgrazing, maintain soil cover, and improve pasture productivity and biodiversity.

Sacred groves are patches of forest protected by local beliefs and customs; they preserve native species, genetic diversity and serve as community-led conservation areas with cultural importance.

Wetlands provide water purification, flood control, habitat for species and fisheries. Management prevents drainage, pollution and over-exploitation to preserve these ecosystem services.

Protecting upstream catchments prevents soil erosion and siltation in reservoirs, maintains inflow quality and quantity, and ensures long-term storage capacity through vegetation and soil conservation measures.

IWRM coordinates development and management of water, land and related resources to maximise economic and social welfare without compromising sustainability — involving stakeholders and policies at basin scale.

Local involvement leverages traditional knowledge, ensures equitable benefit sharing, improves compliance, reduces conflicts and supports sustainable practices tailored to local contexts.

Land reclamation restores degraded lands (mined areas, saline soils) using soil amendments, afforestation, drainage improvement and erosion control to make land productive again.

Sustainable harvest sets collection limits, seasons, rotation cycles and promotes cultivation or domestication of valuable species to reduce pressure on wild populations and ensure future supplies.

Gene and seed banks store genetic material of plants and crops to preserve biodiversity, support breeding for resilience, and act as insurance against crop loss and changing climates.

Restoration returns degraded ecosystems to functional states: reforestation, wetland rehabilitation, riverbank stabilisation and reconnecting fragmented habitats to recover biodiversity and ecosystem services.

Biodiversity offsetting compensates for ecological damage from development by protecting, restoring or creating habitats elsewhere to achieve ‘no net loss’ of biodiversity — used with caution and strong safeguards.

Carrying capacity is the limit of resource use an ecosystem can sustain. Management sets harvest limits and regulates use to keep exploitation within sustainable bounds to prevent collapse.

EIA predicts environmental effects of proposed projects (mines, dams) and suggests mitigation, alternatives and monitoring; it includes public consultation to inform decisions and minimise harm.

PES schemes pay landowners or communities to conserve ecosystems that provide services (water purification, carbon sequestration), aligning economic incentives with conservation goals.

Resource efficiency reduces material and energy use; circular economy promotes reuse, repair, recycling and designing out waste — lowering pressure on raw resources and environmental impacts.

Co-management shares authority between government agencies and local communities for decision-making, enforcement and benefit sharing — boosting compliance and local livelihoods when well-structured.

Protect upstream forests, promote terracing and contour farming, construct check dams and silt traps, and manage grazing to reduce soil erosion and silt inflow to reservoirs.

Selective logging removes only certain trees based on size/species, maintaining forest structure and regeneration. It reduces ecological damage compared to clear-cutting which removes all trees and causes erosion and habitat loss.

Measures include catch limits, seasonal closures, gear restrictions, protecting spawning grounds and community-based co-management to prevent overfishing and ensure long-term fish stocks.

Education builds awareness, fosters sustainable behaviours, trains communities in conservation techniques and empowers youth to participate in resource stewardship and decision-making.

Use native species, control invasives, restore soil and hydrology, monitor outcomes and involve local people. Aim to recover ecological processes, habitat structure and biodiversity.

Community forestry grants local groups rights and responsibilities to manage local forests, enabling sustainable use, income generation and local protection through stewardship and traditional knowledge.

Women often hold traditional ecological knowledge, manage household resources and benefit directly from sustainable practices. Their participation enhances equity and effectiveness of management programs.

Adaptive management uses monitoring and feedback to iteratively adjust practices and policies in response to outcomes and uncertainties — learning by doing to improve resource stewardship.

Incentives include payments for ecosystem services, subsidies for sustainable practices, tax breaks, and market access for sustainably produced goods — making conservation economically attractive.

Healthy forests, wetlands and mangroves buffer floods, stabilise coasts, prevent landslides and absorb storm impacts. Restoring these systems is a nature-based approach to disaster risk reduction.

Markets may not value ecosystem services, leading to over-exploitation (externalities). Regulation, property rights, incentives and public investment correct market failures and encourage sustainable use.

The landscape approach coordinates land use across large areas to balance conservation, production and livelihoods, connecting habitats and planning for multiple ecosystem services.

Indicators include species population trends, water table levels, water quality parameters, soil organic matter, forest cover area and habitat connectivity to assess resource condition and guide management.

Shared rivers, migratory species and ecosystems cross political boundaries requiring treaties, data-sharing and coordinated policies to manage water, biodiversity and avoid conflicts over resource use.

Use green infrastructure (urban forests, green roofs), rainwater harvesting, wastewater recycling, energy efficiency, and sustainable transport to reduce cities' environmental footprints and enhance resilience.

Success is measured by ecological indicators (species recovery, improved water quality), socio-economic outcomes (livelihoods, benefit sharing) and long-term sustainability and governance improvements.

Examples include joint forest management areas where communities restored degraded forests, improved fuelwood supply, enhanced biodiversity and shared forest products — demonstrating stewardship and local benefits.

GIS and remote sensing map land use, monitor forest cover change, track water bodies, detect encroachment and support planning, enforcement and early warning for better-informed management decisions.

Issues include equitable access, rights of indigenous peoples, burden-sharing, ensuring benefits for local communities, and intergenerational justice in using finite resources.

• Balance resource use with conservation to ensure sustainability.
• Use a mix of technical, legal and community approaches (rainwater harvesting, JFM, protected areas).
• Monitor, adapt and involve stakeholders to achieve long-term resilience and equitable benefits.