Enivro Exam II

If we recycled only half of the materials that could be recycled of the total MSW of the United States, we could reduce the total volume of MSW by about

35%.

You finish your canned drink and get ready to throw it out. A garbage can is right nearby, but the recycling bin is a few more steps. Should you bother to recycle aluminum cans? Does it really make a difference? Remember that most electrical energy in the U.S. is generated from fuels that contribute to global climate change. So, when you recycle an aluminum can, about how much energy is saved compared to the amount needed to make a new can?

85 to 95%

About how much of the sun's radiation would strike the Earth if the Earth did not have its atmosphere?

About twice as much

Which one of the following produces the least air pollution?

An automobile BURNING hydrogen as a fuel

The causes of mortality differ greatly between developing and developed countries. In developing countries, a high proportion of mortality is caused by

INFECTIOUS disease; while in the developed world, most deaths are related to crime.

Which of the following is the strongest argument for recycling plastics?

Plastics are produced from the non-renewable fossil fuel petroleum.

Which one of the following best illustrates a nonpoint source of pollution?

Storm-water drainage from the parking lot around a football stadium

On average in the United States, every day each person produces about

The main difference between natural eutrophication and damaging cultural eutrophication is that in cultural eutrophication, the

Which of the following items experiences the lowest levels of recycling?

Thin plastic grocery bags

The ultimate responsibility for public policy legislation controlling the waters of the United States is the

U.S. Congress.

The secret to Sweden's disposing of less than 1% of its MSW in landfills is

a combination of source reduction, recycling and burning MSW as fuel.

The pulp from one tree is equal to a stack of newspapers about

a meter high.

Mine drainage may contaminate waterways with

acidity, sulfates and heavy metals.

One of the greatest drawbacks of using incinerators to burn MSW is that incinerators

add to air pollution in the region.

Compare the amount of municipal solid waste (MSW) generated per person in 2010 to that generated in 1960. If we remove the portion that could be recycled from the 2010 average, how would the remainder compare to the average per person MSW in 1960 when there was essentially no recycling? The average amount per person MSW in 2012 compared to 1960 would be

almost double that generated per person in 1960.

Plastics made of chitosan would

be biodegradable and could be composted.

A sludge digester as part of an urban wastewater treatment facility produces a useful fuel called

biogas

Current ethanol production as a fuel does not significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions because

burning ethanol or gasoline contributes the SAME net amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

Biogas is mostly produced in landfills

by the anaerobic decomposition of organic materials.

PETE (code 1) and HDPE (code 2) plastics

can be recycled and made into many useful products.

A recent study indicated that more than 61% of human pathogens are zoonotic, meaning that they

can be transmitted between animals and humans.

Unlike solar and wind facilities, coal-burning plants and nuclear power plants

can consistently generate electricity at night.

Industrial pollution from an oil refinery best represents a type of

chemical environmental hazard.

Blood lead levels in children between 1996 and 2012 have

continued to decrease as exposure to lead has been reduced.

Data detailing deaths from smoking, obesity, and alcohol use are examples of environmental hazards related to

culture

One of the most common sources of phosphate pollution that has led to eutrophication resulted from the use of

dishwashing detergents.

Instead of purchasing a new car every 5 years and trading in the old one, a person buys a new, well-built car every 15 years, repairs it as needed, and then trades it in for a new one. This approach reduces the overall impact on the environment and best illustrates

extending the life of a product.

The greatest potential pollution and public health problem resulting from the use of landfills in Florida is related to

groundwater contamination.

Submerged aquatic vegetation will most likely thrive when water clarity is

high and dissolved nutrients are high.

In the regions of the dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico just west of the Mississippi River delta, oxygen levels are

highest at the ocean surface, away from oxygen depleting bacteria.

Over the past 50 years, global life expectancy has

increased by more than 20 years due to better health care and nutrition worldwide.

Adding fertilizer to most aquatic systems results in

increased growth of phytoplankton and hypoxic conditions.

Unlike large solar collection fields and dams, wind farms

keep the surrounding land available for farming.

Anaerobic conditions will most likely be generated in a natural water system with

low levels of DO that is contaminated by pollutants with high BOD values.

In general, the strictest standards with the lowest acceptable levels are the

maximum contaminant levels.

Wells are often drilled into landfills to capture valuable

methane

Solar collecting panels would be most effective if they were positioned

nearest to the equator.

Between 1988 and 2014 the number of U.S. landfills has decreased significantly because

of increased recycling and increases in the size of landfills.

Two students need to make a decision about what sort of towels they should purchase in an attempt to generate the least amount of MSW. They agree that if they purchase paper towels, they will buy the thick, quilted brand. The best strategy to generate the least amount of MSW would be to purchase

one bag of 5 rags (about the size of 5 rolls of paper towels) that they can wash out and reuse.

Today, many of the old dumps and landfills from past decades are now

parks and recreational areas widely used by the public.

A building that has a structural design to maximize heat gain in the winter and minimize it in the summer represents the use of

passive solar heating in the winter and passive shading in the summer.

According to the World Health Organization, the root cause placing people at the highest risk of disease is

poverty.

Compared to the use of fossil fuels, wind energy

produces no exhaust pollutants and contributes little to global climate change.

In order to make a rapid transition to renewable energies, countries such as the United States will have to

reduce subsidies to the fossil fuel industry.

In general, countries that enjoy the best health have

the WARMEST climates.

The fires on the Cuyahoga River due to pollution from 1868 to 1969 raised concerns that contributed to

the passage of the Clean Water Act of 1972.

The technology in which parabolic mirror arrays are placed in a desert with a water-filled pipe traversing the array is used to capture the renewable energy of

the sun

Questions about the danger of a particular chemical hazard will relate to that chemical's

toxicity, exposure, and dose.

The new boom in oil and natural gas fracking is posing risks in

water quality.