Surviying natural ressources "economics aspects"

IV FACTORS NATURAL RESOURCE DEGRADATION

A non-neglectable element among others that account for the present situation of natural resources is man and his multiplication. Indeed since his appearance, man has thought that in order to survive he has to destroy all the other species around him. At the same, he has polluted water and air, and so life paradox is that man is trying to assure his survival by destroying it. Demographic boom constitutes another pressure over the ecosystem. Indeed demographic boom involves expansion of agglomerations and of towns. Demographic expansion implies increase in natural resources consumption since these serve both as a raw materiel and as finished products.

So man is a main factor of natural resources degradation owing to technology, demographic explosion and biosphere degradation. This affects vegetation, alters the physical - chemical composition of soil and contributes to fauna destruction and to tropical forest extermination. Man's technological conditions have developed since the time of paleolic ancestors who started destroying nature through their actions. Development of extensive agriculture through resulted in chasing animals and destroying both animal and plant species, which was a threat to ecology. Since then, technological progress has been continuous with a devastating effect on the ecosystem.

The ozone layer is getting and thinner because of the "economics homo" who is destroying the "homosapiens".

That continuous degradation of natural resources has reached frightening proportion s so that some organizations are launching an S.O.S warning and regulations are getting set in order to avoid the worst. All the natural resources (exhaustible, renewable and even invariant ones) are perishing.

UN organizations dealing with conflicts and with natural calamities, through their agents, are also contributing to rare species destruction.

Nuclear and weapon industries together with others polluting the environment. Hunting, fishing, exploitation of forests for firewood is evils and factors of natural resources degradation. According to recent statistics, the beginning and the end of the 21^st century demand for wood is estimated at 1,200 billions cubic meters because of paper industries and other consumptions.

Forest destruction amount to 157.000 km² per year. The ecosystem rhythm degradation is estimated at 24billion tons of soil annually while the total word stock is 3500 billions tons of suitable for cultivation soil. Erosions are therefore expected. According to PNUD specialists desertification has affected a large part of the planet forest capital (Brazil has 50% of its forests; subsaharian keeps less than 20% of its forests).

Hunting constitutes another factor of animal resources destruction. Indeed since the 20^th century, supplying big towns with proteins has resulted in the extermination of mammas and birds like the grassland cock and the dove. Fraudulent trade of elephant tusks, of birds, feathers, skins of animal species has contributed to the extermination of fauna. Combustion of energetic resources, hydro-electrical energy and energetic biomass are other factors resources destruction. The above mentioned factors of natural resources degradation need to be scientifically investigated in order to get a solution to crucial problem which threaten the existence of human species. Economic sciences can serve as a conceptual frame-work in the problematic of natural natural resources conservation and management.

The ecosystem destruction affects not only the other continents but also Africa which, in addition to that, is subject to western and eastern economies greediness. Africa is the least industrialized continent but whose natural resources are robbed by those advanced economies. Such a relentless attack against African natural resources could he assimilated to the Orange Juice policy, which means that those who are exploiting the continent will surely abandon it to its pitiful fate as soon as its natural resources stop serving as raw material of them.

That orange juice policy will increase poverty in this continent which is industrially very late. This, in addition to the affect of degradation, will lead the African continent to its end. Voluntary, fires resulted in extending savannas. This disturbs not flora but also fauna. That is why desertification of the continent continues to delay its economic growth and very soon it twill be the end of that has been saved from desertification.