Question

Explain the types of primary economic activities.

Answer 1

1. Hunting: Hunting was a primitive activity of man to obtain food. A large number of animal species have become extinct or are on the verge of extinction because of large-scale hunting. Commercial hunting is banned all over the world. Also many laws are being passed to conserve and protect the animals. Some tribes practice hunting for their subsistence. Bushmen of Kalahari desert (South Africa), Pygmies of Equatorial Selvas, Boras, Eskimos of Tundra, Sentinels in Andaman, Jarawahs, Onges, etc. hunt for livelihood.
2. Gathering: Many people in the world practice this activity which is dependent on the forest products. They collect fruits, roots and tubers, leaves, flowers, medicinal plants for their livelihood. They also collect products like gum, lac, honey, wax, rubber, etc. Different types of forest products are collected. e.g. kath is collected from monsoon forests from Khair trees. Some of these products have a high demand in the market. This activity is carried out on a large commercial scale. This occupation is carried out in all the forest covered regions of the world. The equatorial forests are dense and evergreen. The climate is humid and unhealthy. Due to the disturbance of reptiles and insects, collection of forest products is not done on a large scale.
3. Lumbering: Amongst all other activities going on in the forest, lumbering is one of the most important activities. According to the nature of vegetation, we divided earth into various natural regions. The trees in the tropical forest have hardwood. Also, these forests are evergreen and hence commercial lumbering cannot be done in these forests. Tropical deciduous or monsoon forests are not dense. Many bushes grow at the base of these forests. Since these forests are near agricultural lands and densely populated regions, they have been deforested for agricultural purpose on a large scale. In the coniferous forests, only one species of trees is found in an area. These trees grow tall. That’s why in the world, the lumbering activity is mostly practised in the coniferous regions. Today, wood is used on a very large scale for various purposes, hence the percentage of forest in the world is decreasing drastically. As a result, hazards related to the environment are occurring.
4. Fishing: There are many physical and human factors that impact development of fishing as a primary activity in certain areas of the world. Though it started as a subsistence level activity, fishing is now one of the major primary economic activities especially in coastal areas.
   1. Some of the factors are as follows: 
      1. Wide expanse of the continental shelf with presence of shallow water. For example, North-West Pacific which is below 200 metres of depth near Okhotsk Sea near China.
      2. Confluence of warm and cold currents and subsequent growth of abundant plankton. As a result, development of fishing grounds or banks takes place. For example, meeting of warm Kuroshio current with cold Oyashio current favours coastal area near Japan for fishing.
   2. Other factors which are favourable for development of fishing are:
      1. The traditional skills of some people who are naturally good at fishing, for example, Japanese and Chinese. The fishing activity has further developed over here.
      2. Large population of the country, lack of land and absence of other protein food makes island countries especially dependent on fish as a staple food. For example, Japan, Philippines.
      3. Absence of alternative occupation makes fishing a major occupation.
      4. Use of technology has increased fishing activity.
      5. Broken coast line provides excellent portal facilities.
      6. Cold climate in temperate regions facilitates preservation of fish. In tropical countries, artificial refrigeration facilities have to be developed.
      7. Nearby forest provides wood for ship building.
5. Animal husbandry: Considering the latitudinal distribution of animal husbandry in the world, it is located between 30°N to 60°N and 30°S to 55°S latitudes. Climate is one of the most influencing factors in the development of animal husbandry. It is more developed in the Northern Hemisphere. Presence of grasslands in all the continents has led to distribution of this occupation. But, this occupation is influenced by advanced technology, market and availability of large estates. It has developed on a commercial basis in North America, South America and Australia. The animal husbandry in North and South America is carried out with the help of advanced technology on a commercial scale. Dense forests inhospitable climate, low-quality fodder in equatorial region has discouraged the development of animal husbandry in these regions. 
6. Mining: Man has been using minerals since ancient times. Minerals have been used for making weapons, tools, jewellery, medicines, utensils, etc. The various stages of cultural evolution of man are also related to the use of minerals. At the end of the Stone Age, man developed skills of using minerals. Various periods like the Copper Age, Bronze Age, Iron Age, Atomic Age, respectively were delineated accordingly. Man’s progressive development can be attributed to the exploitation of minerals. He has even started exploiting the mineral oil and natural gas reserves from the sea and ocean beds too. Man cannot manufacture the minerals that are found naturally in the earth’s crust. The distribution of minerals is highly uneven in the world. This activity depends solely on the presence of minerals and not related to latitude directly. Even though the minerals may be present, actual mining depends on several factors. These factors may be the geology of the region, the value of the minerals, climate, capital investment, technology, skilled labour, etc. Due to mechanisation, this occupation has developed on a large scale. Many industries related to minerals locate near mining areas. Improved transportation facilities are very important for development of mining occupation. This, in turn, increases industries which in turn leads to economic development of the country.
7. Agriculture: Though the area under agriculture is more extensive in Europe, the Americas and Australia; the percentage of population engaged in this activity is very less. Generally, the developed countries of the world have less population engaged in agriculture while the share of population engaged in agriculture is higher in developing countries. Various crops are produced in the different parts of the world. Various physical and socioeconomic factors influence the development of agriculture. Major physical factors that influence agriculture are climate, topography, soils and biotic factors. The economic and social factors include labour, market, capital, transportation facilities, storage facilities, government policies, population, ownership of land etc. We saw various types of agriculture and their characteristics through the images given earlier. Greenhouses, polyhouses are also used for agriculture. Similarly, high-yielding seeds, fertilizers and insecticides are also used for increasing production.