Economics The Basics

Finite resources and sustainability

• There are only a finite/ limited number of resources
  • Workers, machines, acres of land and reserves of oil and other natural resources on the earth.
• Resources are being consumed faster than the planet can replace them
  • De-coupling - a process attempting to increase efficiency in allocation of resources.breaking the link between increasing demand and resource depletion.

Factors of Production

Capital                      Enterprise                         Labour                     Land 

 Infrastructure – a crucial type of capital

Renewable Resources

• They must be inexhaustible or replaceable over time.
• Rate of extraction must be less than the rate at which the resource renews itself.