'land-sourced' originates from the combination of 'land' and 'sourced', where 'land' refers to the earth's surface not covered by water, and 'sourced' means obtained from a particular origin.

The term 'land-sourced' evolved from the need to distinguish resources obtained from land as opposed to those from the sea or air.

Initially, it meant 'obtained from land', and this meaning has largely remained the same in modern usage.