APENVSCIFENUJOBO)IUBN
Mass burn incinerators run at _____.
1,500 degrees Fahrenheit
What percentage of all hazardous waste created in the United States was regulated under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act?
5%
What percentage of solid municipal waste in the United States could be eliminated by the use of integrated waste management?
75-90%
What is an environment that can support itself without outside help?
A Sustainable Ecosystem
Additive effects of chemical interactions create what result?
A chemical that has the effect of both individual chemicals in the reaction
Select the appropriate definition of a mass burn incinerator.
A facility where waste is burned at very high temperatures
Which of the following best describes Voluntary Simplicity?
A form of sustainable consumption that involves a conscious decision to minimize the use and accumulation of goods and services.
Identify the appropriate definition of composting.
A form of waste disposal where organic waste decomposes naturally under oxygen-rich conditions
Which of the following describes an Emerging Market?
A less developed nation with a rapidly growing economy.
Deforestation can result when an emerging nation experiences industrial development. What is the environmental concern associated with deforestation?
A loss of biodiversity and increased carbon dioxide release into the atmosphere.
Which of the following was likely NOT a reason why the Industrial Revolution took place?
A massive increase in food production lead to people trying to find ways to preserve the food surplus for later consumption.
Which of the following statements is true?
A person living in voluntary simplicity makes a conscious decision to reduce their environmental impact.
What is the term used to describe a substance that pollutes the air, water or land?
A pollutant
What is the appropriate definition for integrated waste management?
A system that combines a variety of strategies for both waste management and waste reduction.
What advantage do emerging nations have over developed nations in dealing with environmental concerns?
Access to technology that developed markets have created already.
Which of the following terms represents the average consumption rate of individuals within the population?
Affluence
Livestock excrement is an example of _____.
Agricultural waste
Which of the following terms is used to describe explosive growth of algae at or near the surface of the water?
Algal blooms
Which of the following is true about carcinogens?
All are correct
How do the height and behavior of children affect their susceptibility to toxicants?
All are correct.
Which is NOT a reason children are more susceptible to toxicants than adults?
All are reasons children are more susceptible
Which of the following is an action that individuals can take to reduce the overall amount of solid waste they produce?
All of the answers are correct
Which is NOT a type of toxicant?
Allergy disruptor
Which of the following is an important indicator of the health of a water body and its ability to support a diverse balance of aquatic organisms?
Amount of dissolved oxygen
How can a landfill be best described?
An area for trash disposal in which the pollutants are dumped, and then covered by soil.
A virus was transmitted from Bob to Julie. What is this called?
An infectious disease.
What is the appropriate definition of hazardous waste?
Any solid or liquid waste that is considered toxic, chemically reactive, flammable, or corrosive
Which of the following is NOT one of the twelve principles of green chemistry?
Avoiding the use of catalysts
The Environmental Protection Agency has expressed concern about Jones Logging Co. regarding their contribution to the greenhouse effect. Why would the EPA be concerned about this?
Because deforestation releases CO2 into the atmosphere.
Why is a tornado considered a physical hazard?
Because it is a naturally occurring physical process in the environment.
Why can subsistence farming be harmful to the environment?
Because it often requires deforestation and increased levels of carbon dioxide.
Why has more pressure been put on taxpayers when it comes to cleaning up contaminated sites?
Because of a combination of the high cost of cleanup and the expiration of the Superfund Act
Why does bird flu spread rapidly?
Because of altered bird migration routes.
Why are sanitary landfills not the best long term solution?
Because of issues like pollution and leachates that would threaten the environment
Why is there a lack of enthusiasm from consumers for sustainable consumption?
Because people simply are not aware of the environmental cost of the products they buy and the services they use.
Why are POPs like DDT still an issue despite the US signing the Stockholm Convention?
Because the US still sells DDT to other countries where it hasn't been outlawed.
Why are forests described as carbon sinks?
Because they absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and prevent the greenhouse effect.
Why are fossil fuels harmful to the environment?
Because they emit greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.
Why are perennial weeds not recommended to add during composting?
Because they grow back and spread.
Which of the following terms is used to describe a measure of the amount of oxygen required by aerobic microorganisms to decompose organic matter in water?
Biochemical Oxygen Demand (B.O.D)
Which of the following resulted when forests were cleared to make room for farms?
Biodiversity decreased
Which of the following is a property of biological pollutants?
Biological pollutants easily adapt in new surroundings.
Grass has been subjected to toxicants. Several cows have eaten lots of the grass and ingested the toxicants that were in the grass. Those cows then die, and a vulture comes and eats pieces of the cows, ingesting all the toxicants. What has just happened?
Biomagnification
Referring to the North American birds of prey, why were the eggs so thin?
Biomagnification of DDT
Which of the following is TRUE of Sustainable Consumption and Voluntary Simplicity?
Both minimize the impact on the environment.
Which type of ash is created directly from the burned waste?
Bottom ash
BRICS is an acronym that includes which of the following nations?
Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa.
How does green chemistry directly benefit businesses?
By producing higher yields
How does green chemistry support the goals of source reduction?
By reducing overall amount of hazardous waste and decreasing use of raw materials
Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of hazardous waste?
Chemically active
Which of the following is one of the most notable examples of Industrial Ecology in practice today?
Denmark's Kalundborg Eco-industrial Park
In which phases, of the life cycle of a chemical, is green chemistry involved?
Design, manufacturing, consumer use and disposal
Which of the following best describes Sustainable Development?
Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs
What distinguishes dioxins from polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs)?
Dioxins can occur naturally; PCBs are man-made.
Which of the following is a true descriptor of waterborne diseases?
Diseases that travel by water
Choose the set of factors that will most certainly lead to desertification.
Drought, aggressive agricultural, and grazing practices.
Which of the following terms is used to describe the measure of the demand for resources required to support a lifestyle?
Ecological Footprint
What is a biological hazard?
Ecological interactions between organisms.
Why is risk management difficult?
Economic benefits often outweigh health costs
For Sustainable Development to be successful, which key systems must work together?
Economic, Social, Environmental
What do the letters in the equation IPAT stand for?
Environmental Impact, Population, Affluence, Technology
Which of the following terms describes the point beyond which the environment exceeds its ability to provide essential resources?
Environmental Limits
Which term is best described as the responsible interaction with the environment to avoid depletion or degradation of natural resources and allow for long-term environmental quality?
Environmental sustainability
What is the Guillette study an example of?
Epidemiology
How does industrial agriculture threaten environmental sustainability?
It relies heavily on irrigation, which could deplete groundwater.
How does a child's metabolism make it more susceptible to toxicants?
It speeds up both the absorption and processing of toxicants.
Why was Silent Spring important?
It synthesized a diverse collection of information for the general public.
Who is credited with inventing the seed drill?
Jethro Tull
Which type of compost system utilizes the technique of windrows?
Large-scale composting by municipalities
Which of the following is a component of the sanitary landfill system that is NOT directly involved in helping prevent leakage?
Layers of soil
Which of the following statements is true?
More people are shopping online, increasing the risk of spreading infectious diseases.
What triggered the Industrial Revolution?
More people started moving to the cities creating a demand for non-agricultural jobs.
What level of doses do toxicologists use on lab animals?
Much higher doses than you would experience in nature
How is the creation of municipal solid waste different from that of non-municipal solid waste?
Municipal solid waste is created by an individual while non-municipal solid waste is created during the production of a product.
Why is it difficult to assign responsibility for product safety?
Pollutants and products do not obey national or international boundaries.
Renee has started to compost her food scraps and leaves/yard trimmings. When it all breaks down into soil, she'll use that for her garden. This is an example of which?
Recycle
Total Logging wants to start cutting down trees in a particular area, but they are an environmentally friendly logging company and they want to ultimately preserve the woodland. What can they do to accomplish this?
Selective logging
Which of the following best describes Industrial Ecology?
The study of industrial systems aimed at finding strategies to reduce environmental impact
Which of the following is TRUE about toxicants?
Toxicants are toxic agents in the environment.
What are persistent organic pollutants?
Toxicants that remain in the environment for long periods of time
What are persistent toxicants?
Toxicants that resist breaking down in the presence of environmental factors
Most bacteria are _____.
harmless
If hazardous waste is being disposed of in a shallow depression in the earth, which is lined with plastic and impervious materials, then it is possible to infer that the waste is being disposed of in _____.
surface impoundments
In the United States, how many pounds of hazardous waste are found in the average household?
100 lbs
In what year was the Superfund Act established?
1980
What is the average thickness of the plastic liner inside of sanitary landfills?
2-4 feet
What year was the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants convened?
2001
What percentage of all municipal solid waste in the United States is yard and food waste?
27%
Which of the following is the Food and Drug Administration responsible for regulating?
Cosmetics and drugs
What is risk management?
Decisions used to minimize risk
Which of the following is an effect of deforestation?
Deforestation decreases soil health.
Which of the following is an example of industrial waste?
Demolition waste
Which of the following is an indicator bacteria?
Fecal coliform
Explain how the use of fertilizers by farmers affect the oxygen level in waterways.
Fertilizers run off into waterways which cause rapid growth of tiny plants and eventual depletion of oxygen levels.
Jones Oil Company recently hired an outside consultant to examine their use of harmful chemicals in their process. They are hoping to reduce the amount they use. This is an application of _____ of integrated waste management.
First Priority
Select the item that should NOT be placed in a compost container.
Fish skin and bones
What does the presence of indicator bacteria show?
Harmful bacteria may be present
Bob Smith is an ecologist and is very interested in a new chemical. But he is concerned about the potential toxicity of this new chemical. What should Bob do?
He should perform a dose-response curve.
How did the cotton gin help revolutionize the textile industry?
It made the mass production of cloth possible.
Why is breast milk potentially dangerous to infants?
It passes on many of the toxicants in the mother's body.
Which of the following can occur due to runoff of pollutants, such as pesticides and fertilizers?
Increased water pollution
Which of the following is NOT an effect of deforestation?
Increased water vapor in the atmosphere.
Adams Paint uses a process of paint manufacturing that generates unique liquid color waste. Located across the street from them is Total T-Shirts. Adams Paint and Total T-Shirts realize they can collaborate by Total T-Shirts using their liquid color waste to manufacture tye-dye shirts. What is this an example of?
Industrial Ecology
Which of the following did the Stockholm Convention address?
International use of persistent organic pollutants
What happens to the environmental impact if the population increases?
It also increases
Which of the following is TRUE of Industrial Ecology?
It assumes industrial systems can become more efficient and sustainable if examined creatively.
During the Industrial Revolution coal replaced wood as a major source of fuel. How does burning coal impact the environment?
It can increase acid rain.
How is the baghouse structure important in the mass burn incinerator?
It filters out particulates.
Which is NOT true about risk assessment?
It is only concerned with risks that pose an immediate threat
What does it mean when a disease-causing agent is parasitic?
It lives and feeds off of a host organism.
This type of toxicant is often used in chemical weapons, and causes slurred speech, loss of muscle control, and death.
Neurotoxins
Which of the following occurred during the Agricultural Revolution?
New methods of farming, such as crop rotation, were used
Bob is talking to Charlie about the environmental challenges facing us and the next generation. Bob tells Charlie that the single most foundational threat to sustainable development is the high usage of oil and gas. Is Bob correct?
No; at the most foundational level, the increasing world population is the greatest threat to sustainable development.
Select the appropriate definition of solid waste.
Objects or particles that accumulate at the location where they are produced
Which of the following is not a potential source of sustainable energy?
Oil
Before 1935, which method of waste disposal was most common?
Open-air piles
Which of the following resulted from the Agricultural Revolution?
People were able to move off the farms and into cities
In the United States, what two industries produce the majority of hazardous waste ?
Petroleum and chemical industries
Which of the following is NOT an example of sustainable consumption?
Practicing subsistence farming.
Which of the following is an example of an indoor environmental hazard?
Radon
Jamie is a scientist who has tested the dose and response of a new drug on mice. She's established a reliable dose-response curve. When recommending dosages for humans, how will Jamie extrapolate her data?
Recommend lower doses for humans just to be safe, since the tests were on animals.
In terms of the hierarchy, what is the order of the three Rs?
Reduce, reuse, recycle
Which of the following descriptions best explains environmental sustainability?
Responsible interaction with the environment to avoid depletion or degradation of natural resources and allow for long-term environmental quality
Instead of throwing out old clothes and towels, Julia cuts the items up and uses them as cleaning rags. This is an example of which of the following waste management strategies?
Reuse
Which of the following is NOT a parasitic worm?
Ringworm
Which of the following is NOT an example of municipal solid waste?
Rocks from mining
Which of the three priorities for integrated waste management deals with the actions of individuals and small businesses?
Second Priority
Which of the following is NOT a human cause of eutrophication?
Solar Energy Plants
Where is the famous Fresh Kills Landfill located?
Staten Island, NY
Which of the following terms describes the use of products and services in a way that minimizes the impact on the environment so that human needs can be met not only in the present, but also for future generations?
Sustainable Consumption
Which of the following statements is FALSE concerning sustainable agriculture?
Sustainable agriculture farmers often grow monocrops, which means they grow a single crop year after year.
Which of the following is an application of environmental sustainability?
Sustainable forestry
Matthew purchases a new computer and television. Which of the following is a way for him to recycle his outdated computer and television?
Take the items to a community electronics disposal event.
Which of the following is TRUE about teratogens?
Teratogens cause birth defects in unborn babies.
Sharon is a doctor who moonlights as an ecologist. She regularly drives by a water supply that is not far from a farm with lots of animals. She worries that the water supply has been contaminated by fecal matter. What should Sharon do?
Test for indicator bacteria
Which of the following describes the approach of many businesses in the United States which causes an introduction of products into the market that have not been thoroughly tested?
The 'innocent until proven guilty' approach
Which report from the World Commission on Environment and Development is credited with coining the term Sustainable Development?
The Brundtland Report
What will result from using more energy-efficient products and cleaner energy sources?
The Technology (T) variable and the Environmental Impact (I) will both decrease
What is bioaccumulation?
The build up of a toxicant in the tissue of organisms
How does smog develop?
The burning of fossil fuels releases pollutants that mix with particles in the air.
How does subsistence farming threaten environmental sustainability?
The deforestation leads to soil erosion and other problems.
What is the ED50?
The effective dose for 50% of the study population
Why is sustainable consumption important?
The human population is currently using resources at a rate the planet cannot sustain.
What is true about infectious diseases?
The incidence of some infectious diseases is increasing due to environmental changes.
What is a threshold dose?
The minimum amount needed for a response to occur.
Upon the creation of the Superfund Act, who was held responsible for the cleaning of the contaminated site?
The people who contaminated the site
Which of the following best describes eutrophication?
The process by which a body of water becomes overly enriched by nutrients leading to an increased growth of algae and aquatic plant life
What does a low LD50 mean?
The toxicant has a high toxicity.
What did Dr. Guillette discovered about alligators in Lake Apopka?
Their hormones were being disrupted by DDT.
Why are consumption patterns in most industrialized and developed nations considered unsustainable?
Their products and services rely on too many natural resources and create harmful emissions when consumed.
Why did coal replace wood as a fuel source?
There was a lot of coal available and coal is efficient.
Which is FALSE about bacteria?
They are parasitic.
Which is NOT true about aflatoxins?
They come from reactions with other chemicals
What is the problem with the approach of many countries to Integrated Waste Management?
They focus too much on waste management at the expense of waste reduction.
Which of the following is NOT true of waterborne diseases?
They respond negatively to environmental changes.
Why are children more susceptible than adults to toxicants?
They take in more toxicants relative to their body size.
The variability of life forms within a given ecosystem is known as _____.
biodiversity
What best describes a chemical reaction?
Two or more chemicals react to form a new chemical
Vaccines protect against which disease-causing agent?
Viruses
What differentiates a virus from bacteria?
Viruses are not living cells, whereas bacteria are.
A new city is built in an area with a large lake. The city primarily uses the lake as a major water supply for a variety of different city needs. This becomes a concern for environmentalists. Why are they concerned?
Water is a renewable natural resource, but if they use it too fast, nature won't keep up.
Identify an issue that is NOT concerned with mass burn incinerators.
Water pollution
Which of the following is the appropriate definition of green chemistry?
When chemical products and processes are designed in a way that reduces the use or creation of hazardous substances
What is the precautionary principle?
Your Answer New actions should not be taken until we understand their ramifications.
Identify the statement that correctly describes the movement of Zoonotic diseases.
Zoonotic diseases jump from animals to humans.
Cancer
all are correct
People who smoke cigarettes are at increased risk for lung cancer because cigarettes contain chemicals that are _____.
carcinogens
Epidemiological studies look at
effects of substances on humans in nature
Potentiating effects are
one chemical maximizing the effect of another one
The U.S. _____ the Stockholm Convention.
only signed
Discarded water bottles and sulfur dioxide are examples of _____ and _____ pollutants.
physical; chemical
Human cell studies are _____ to epidemiological studies because ______.
preferable; they do not directly expose humans to hazards
Antagonistic interactions are
two chemicals cancelling each other out
Synergistic interactions are
two chemicals combining into a chemical with more than double the effect