IMPORTANCE OF NATURAL RESOURCES
To develop new areas
When a new place with natural resources is discovered, the place will be developed as people will be migrating to that particular place for working purpose. In the long run, new housing areas and roads will be built. Other facilities such as hospitals, schools and so on would also be established due to the increase of population in the area.
As a national income
The natural resources in Malaysia are very economically beneficial and are not only used in our country, but at the same time, they are being exported to other countries. Do you know that Malaysia is one of the biggest petroleum suppliers in the world? Our country’s petroleum is of very high quality as their sulphur content are low. Therefore, the demand is very high. They are being exported to Thailand, Singapore and also America. This eventually would serves as a national income.
To provide job opportunities
The harvesting of natural resources provides many job opportunities. If these natural resources deplete or extinct, many people might lose their jobs. For instance, when some of the gold mines in Peninsular Malaysia were closed, many workers lose their source of income.
To maintain the Earth’s ecosystem
Without the natural resources, the Earth’s ecosystem will not be balanced. For instance, too much of exploitation of forest resource will lead to global warming and the destruction of natural habitat, thus causing extinction of many species of flora and fauna.