Land Resources in the UK

The United Kingdom has tons of different land resources at their disposal. These resources include coal, natural gas, oil, and agricultural resources such as wheat, barley, and livestock. 

The UK is the largest producer of oil and the second largest producer of natural gas within the European Union. Despite this, in more recent years. the UK has used more natural gas and oil than they produce. Coal was a major important resource, because it became a foundation for the UK’s modern economy. However, the mining of coal is on a decline, as resources are slowly starting to be used up. The last deep pit coal mine is scheduled to close in August of 2016.

As stated by britannica.com:

“By contrast, the United Kingdom has larger energy resources—including oil, natural gas, and coal—than any other EU member. Coal, the fuel once vital to the British economy, has continued to decrease in importance. The discovery of oil in the North Sea and the apportionment of its area to surrounding countries led to the rapid development of oil exploitation. Since the start of production in 1975, the quantities brought ashore have grown each year, and the United Kingdom has become virtually self-sufficient in oil and even an exporter. With an average output of nearly three million barrels per day at the beginning of the 21st century, the country was one of the world’s largest producers.” (more on this here)

The UK also has many agricultural resources, with it's largest crops being wheat and barley. However, the UK has maintained a high amount of self-sustainability, being that it produces enough grains for human consumption, and for the creation of animal feed. This allows for the UK to be skilled in raising livestock such as cattle, sheep, pigs, and poultry.

Map of wheat production:

All of these resources are used to form the skeleton of the country's industry, allowing their economy to grow. While manufacturing is at a decline, fishing and farming are still a common source of profit. The use of oil and coal provide the UK with natural energy. They could be taking advantage of water power as a natural energy source as well, although this isn't being used on a commercial basis. All of these factors contribute to the UK's high economic standing.

Group UK: Kayla, Emily, Ruby

Land Resources in China

China is one of the richest countries in terms of land resources. Throughout different parts of the country, China has cultivated land, forests, grasslands, and large mineral deposits.

According to china.org.cn,

“China's cultivated lands, forests and grasslands are among the world's largest in terms of sheer area. But due to China's large population, the per-capita areas of cultivated land, forest and grassland are small, especially in the case of cultivated land - only one third of the world's average.”

You can read more here.

One of China’s best assets in terms of land resources are its mineral deposits. China contains all 158 different minerals in the world. This includes coal, iron ore, phosphorus, sulfur and rare earth metals. China also has large deposits of petroleum, natural gas, and oil shale. It is estimated that China contains 95% of the world's rare earth metals, which are important because they are used to make electronics. From an economics standpoint this could become a big problem if China refused to export some of these metals.

Map of minerals:

Along with its minerals resources, large portions of China are used for agriculture. 130 million ha of land are used for farming, around 10% of China’s total area. Crops grown include wheat, corn, cotton, rice, and other crops. 171 million ha of forests cover China, with trees such as birch, willow, elm, and dragon spruce. China also has 400 million ha of grassland, which is used for grazing livestock., like cattle, horses, and sheep.

China’s natural resources are important because they have allowed China to expand and grow its economy. China’s huge manufacturing industry is supported by their available resources. Other resources, such as oil and natural gas, give China cheap energy. Overall China is one of the richest countries in terms of natural resources, although due to its large population, the per capita resources amount of resources are small. 

Group China: Majken, Sarah, Cristina, Luke