TheEarth’s naturalresources includeair,water,soil,minerals,fuels, plants, and animals.Conservationis the practice of caring for these resources so all living things can benefit from them now and in the future.

All the things we need tosurvive, such asfood, water, air, andshelter, come from natural resources. Some of these resources, like small plants, can be replaced quickly after they are used. Others, like large trees, take a long time to replace. These arerenewable resources.

Other resources, such asfossil fuels, cannot be replaced at all. Once they are used up, they are gone forever. These arenonrenewable resources.

People often waste natural resources. Animals areoverhunted.Forests are cleared, exposing land to wind and water damage.Fertilesoil is exhausted and lost toerosionbecause of poor farming practices. Fuel supplies aredepleted. Water and air arepolluted.

If resources are carelessly managed, many will be used up. If used wisely and efficiently, however, renewable resources will last much longer. Through conservation, people can reduce waste and manage natural resources wisely.

Thepopulationof human beings has grownenormously in the past two centuries. Billions of people use up resources quickly as they eat food, build houses, produce goods, and burn fuel fortransportationandelectricity. The continuation of life as we know it depends on the careful use of natural resources.

The need to conserve resources oftenconflicts with other needs. For some people, a wooded area may be a good place to put a farm. Atimbercompany may want to harvest the area’s trees forconstruction materials. A business may want to build afactoryor shopping mall on the land.