Question

Why is land considered an important resource?

Answer 1

• One of the most important natural resources is land.
• Not all parts of the land are habitable, and land constituted only around thirty percent of the earth’s surface area.
• Due to the varied climate and characteristics of land, the population across the globe is unevenly distributed.
• Sparsely populated areas are thick forested areas, desert areas, low-lying areas which are susceptible to waterlogging and steep slopes of the mountains and places having rugged topography.
• Suitable land for agriculture is the river valleys and plains. Hence one can find high population density in these places.
• Land is used for many purposes such as setting up industries, building roads, houses, mining, forestry and agriculture.
• This is known as land use.
• The use of land is determined by physical factors such as the availability of water, minerals, climate, soil and topography.
• Another important determinant in the land use pattern are the human factors such as technology and population.
• On the basis of ownership, land use can be classified as community land and private land.
• The community land is owned by the community for common uses like collection of medicinal herbs, nuts, fruits, fodder whereas private land is owned by individuals.
• These community lands are also called common property resources.