NRES 103 Final Exam
How much of the planet's fresh water is found in the Great Lakes?
20%
All but one of the connections between the Great Lakes and freshwaters beyond the Great Lakes basin dried up by
2500 years ago
How long can humans last without water?
3-4 days
Of the Great Lakes how many of them are in the top 10 biggest lakes according to surface area? and which?
4 lakes, (1) Superior), (3) Huron, (4) Michigan, (10) Erie
Annual cargo through the Seaway peaked in the mid-1970s at around 57 million tons; the seaway was designed to handle
80 million tons
Of the world's port cities, what percentage are within two stops of a Great Lakes port?
99%
According to the film Great Lakes Water Level Changes, the three major factors in the Great Lakes water budget include
-Evaporation from the Lakes -Precipitation directly on the Lakes -Runoff into the lakes
Botulism-causing bacteria spread up the food chain after
-Being ingested by invasive mussels -Gobies ate toxic mussels -Birds consumed toxic gobies
Unlike the algal blooms in the late 1960s, the blooms in Lake Erie in the mid 1990s were caused by
-Blue-green algae -Microcystis -Cyanobacteria
The effects of lead poisoning
-Can last for decades -Are especially pronounced in children
Early immigrants who encountered the Great Black Swamp and decided to settle in the region
-Decided to drain it -Were in awe
To help reduce a $25 million budget deficit, the city of Flint
-Decided to temporarily get its water from the Flint River -Decided to build its own water pipeline
Quagga mussels eventually outnumbered zebra mussels by a huge margin because the former
-Don't need a hard surface to adhere to -Can tolerate much deeper water
Problem with mid-ocean flushing of ballast tanks include
-Effectiveness is difficult to assess due to the lag time in detection of exotic species -It kills 99% of organisms, but there could still be a lot in there
The amount of cargo to pass through the Seaway currently
Could be carried by two freight trains per day
In a sense, it could be said that the Clean Water Act had its origins in the
Cuyahoga River
Since the Great Lakes have been connected to the Atlantic Ocean, the number of forage fish species has
Decreased
Of the changes in the Great Lakes associated with climate, the commercial shipping industry is most affected by
Low water
For four of the five Great Lakes, the estimated impact of invasion by Asian Carp is
Moderate to high
Increases in high precipitation events is a concern in the Great Lakes because direct results will be
More runoff from agricultural fields
What prevents animals from migrating from the ocean to the upper great lakes?
Niagara Falls
A key question in ecological restoration globally, and especially applicable to the Great Lakes has to do with
Target conditions
Detractors of the St. Lawrence Seaway believed
That it would ruin the business of U.S ports on the eastern seaboard
At one point, the Great Lakes were connected to
The Atlantic Ocean
The Great Lakes used to be connected to...
The Atlantic Ocean
Which river is one of the worst in-place-pollutant problems in the Great Lakes system?
The Detroit
Whitefish were ultimately able to switch to invasive mussels as a good source because
Their stomach muscles began to enlarge
One thing that the timber holdings in the upper Midwest and the Great Lakes Fisheries had in common was that
They both seemed limitless
The zebra mussel could not have 'walked' across the Atlantic Ocean to reach the Great Lakes, even over many generations, because
They could not have survived the ocean's salinity or depth
The primary mission for french explorers in the Great Lakes was?
to find a passage to the great south sea and cathay
Annual damage to fisheries and recreational activities caused by invasive mussels in the Great Lakes is estimated to cost
$200 Million
The reported annual cost borne by municipalities and industry in the Great Lakes region to keep pipes free from mussels
$600 million
Lake Superior
-1st largest in the world according to surface area -Deepest lake -Largest of the Great Lakes -largest surface area -largest volume
Lake Ontario
-2nd deepest -Smallest lake by surface area -Separated by Niagara Falls
Lake Michigan
-4th largest lake by surface area -Technically connected to another of the Great Lakes -lies entirely within the border of one country
Once the salmon and alewife were gone in Lake Huron
-A number of native fish species began to increase in number -Fishing towns in Michigan along the Huron coast lost a lot of revenue -The round goby proved to be a key food source for some native fish species
Cities tended to be constructed where?
-Adjacent to protected harbors and river mouths -Near areas preferred by spawning fish and waterfowl
The Sanitary and Ship Canal was
-An early, successful water grab from the Great Lakes -Essentially a back door to the Great Lakes -Another example of people trying to engineer nature to suit their needs
For a trait to be considered to be an adaptation in an evolutionary sense
-It must be favorable to an organism's survival -It must be favorable to an organism's ability to reproduce -It must be heritable
Ballast serves a key function on freighters because
-It provides stability to an empty ship -It is heavy, readily available, and basically free
In 2011, the Environmental Protection Agency agreed to mandate treatment systems for all trans-oceanic ships discharging ballast in U.S. waters, but
-It's uncertain as to whether all ships will comply -Such systems aren't required until 2021 -It's not certain that such systems will be effective against all exotic species
The zebra mussel, the quagga mussel, and round goby
-Likely reached the Great Lakes in the ballast of a freighter -Have their native range in the Black and/or Caspian seas -First appeared in North America near Lake St. Clair
Of the world's port cities, the Great Lakes are directly connected to
12%
How long ago did the last glacier withdraw from North America?
12,000 years
In the film Saving the Great Lakes from Toxic Algae, Jeff Reutters from the Stone Lab recommends that if we are going to the possibility of poisoned drinking water in the Lake Erie region, we should first
Focus on water treatment plans
Successful invasive species often lack predators in their new environment, and also tend to be
Habitat generalist (can thrive in a wide variety of environmental conditions)
Alewives became the primary food source of lake trout, but also
Harmed the reproductive potential of the trout
The listing of the lake sturgeon as endangered illustrates the point that environmental impacts especially impact species that
Have a low reproductive rate
Collectively, western states in the U.S. have spent how much to monitor and control invasive mussels
Hundreds of millions
Zebra Mussels impact native mussels directly
Inhibiting their ability to open their shells
The notion of restoring even parts of the Great Lakes region to conditions that existed prior to European settlement is challenging because
Of so much environmental degradation
Even though zebra mussels can only move about 14" an hour using their 'foot,' they can rapidly reach new locations because
Offspring are covered with hairs that help them to catch currents
Rain, snow, and surface runoff streams and rivers add water to the Great Lakes, but this is offset by
Outflow
The problem of water pollution was compounded by the huge size of the Great Lakes because
People didn't think they could have much of an impact on such large bodies of water
The last ice age occurred during the
Pleistocene Age
Once water samples tested positive for carp beyond the electrical barriers, General Peabody
Refused to close the locks
The Supreme Court rejected Missouri's lawsuit, even though the number of typhoid cases in St. Louis had increased fourfold since the opening of the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal because
The Illinois River appeared to be relatively clean to what it was
The first canal to bridge the Chicago Portage was
The Illinois and Michigan Canal
The deadliest fire in U.S. history was
The Peshtigo Fire
Ultimately, the federal government charged the state of Michigan with a violation of
The Safe Water Drinking Act
In the film clip, Invasive Species -- Asian Carp, Kay Nelson expresses concern about the idea of constructing a permanent barrier in the Sanitary and Ship Canal because
The general public has the impression that this is a quick fix
What feature makes Lake Ontario somewhat separate from the other lakes in terms of connectivity?
The height of Niagara Falls
In the film The St. Lawrence Seaway System, the proposed way to get around the fact the locks and were too small for transoceanic ships was
To unload cargo and put it on smaller ships
The food chain concept revolves around...
Tropic relationships
In the U.S, the coastline of the Great Lakes is longer than the Atlantic coastline, the coast of the Gulf of Mexico, or the Pacific coast (not counting Alaska and Hawaii)
True
Predicting which species are likely to become invasive is
Very difficult to do
A unique feature of the Great Lakes in summer is the tendency to
Warm from the shore out
The Aral Sea in the former Soviet Union
Was once the world's fourth largest lake
Why is turnover water important for in lakes?
Water quality
Fisheries managers were surprised to learn that chinook salmon
Were reproducing in the wild in prodigious numbers
On lands near Lake Erie's western basin , there is a large emphasis on in ecological restoration of
Wetlands
Since the mid-1970s, the amount of cargo passing through the Seaway annually has
declined
Water levels in the Great Lakes have always varied, but with climate change, this variation is expected to
-Be greater -Be less predictable
The round goby resulted in
-Became the dominant forage fish -Helped to keep mussel populations in check -Depressed populations of sculpins and darters
The EPA exempted the discharge of ballast water from the Clean Water Act
-Even though they did not have Congressional approval to do so -Because doing so would reduce administrative costs -Because they thought it was relatively harmless
Native mussels in the Great Lakes helped to maintain water clarity by
-Filtering organic material from the water column -Eating algae
Asian carp possesses several of the key attributes that tend to allow species to become invasive, including
-Good dispersers -Lack of predators -Extremely high reproduction rate
Of the five Great Lakes, Lake Erie has/it what
-Has the most fish -Is the most productive
Prior to settlement, water flowed clear from the Maumee River to Lake Erie. Now, the extensive grid of ditches and tile lines
-Have increased nutrient inputs to the river -Have made the river more turbid -Have increased flows in the river
Of the changes in the Great Lakes associated with climate, recreational boating and tourism are most affected by
-High water -Low water
In cities, surfaces that are impervious to rainfall tend to
-Increase in area -Result in inputs to rivers and the Lakes that included dirt, refuse, and horse manure -Increase runoff during storm events
Which of the following trends in the Great Lakes is attributed to climate change?
-Increase in water temperature -Increase in the number of rainfall events
Compared to point-source pollution, nonpoint pollution
-Is harder to track -Is more difficult to regulate
Phosphorus
-Is required by every living organism -Does not exist naturally in the environment
The round goby is considered a generalist species because
-It can live in freshwater or saltwater -It has a diverse diet -It is very aggressive -It tends to take charge of other fish
Some strategies for getting rid of carp include
-Making fertilizer from them -Making pet food from them -Making fish cakes from them
A fundamental principle of environmental justice is that
-Minority groups should not be disproportionately burdened by environmental harm -People should have a voice in decisions that affect them
Lake Erie
-Most shallow lake (intense storms) -10th largest Lake in the world according to surface area -Smallest by volume
Successful invasive species tend to
-Produce a lot of offspring -Be very good dispersers
Which of the following is one of the main focus areas of the Great Lakes Initiative?
-Removal of toxins -Invasive species control -Non-point source pollution control
Dead zones in the Great Lakes are created by
-Run-away algal growth -Decomposition of algal cells -Excessive nutrient inputs
The St. Lawrence divide
-Runs through Southern Canada -Runs through the western part of Chicago -Is generally more of a hill than a mountain
Invasive mussels were able to colonize isolated inland Lakes by
-Taking refuge in any damp spot on a boat out of water -Being able to live on a boat outside of water for days
Lake Huron
-Technically is connected to another of the Great Lakes -Holds the largest fresh water island in the world -3rd Largest in the world by surface area
A key problem with the St. Lawrence seaway was
-The 9 month shipping season -That the locks and channels were too small
Historical racism was reported to contribute to the use of Flint water for drinking because
-The residents were mostly poor and African American -The residents were not viewed as credible -The complaints of the residents were not taken seriously
Once the Great Black Swamp was cleared and drained, the people there found
-The soils were incredibly rich -They had the most productive land in the country
Features of zebra mussels that eliminated them to be such successful invaders include
-Their ability to reproduce at a relatively young age -The ability of females to produce so many eggs -A lack of native predators in the Great Lakes -Their high filtration rate
Which factors make the Great Lake unique?
-They are all geographically connected-Connectivity-Location
One way that gobies can gain a numerical advantage on native fish is that
-They spawn up to three times per summer -They drive other fish from their spawning beds -They are voracious egg eaters
The St. Lawrence Seaway was constructed
-To allow ocean-going freighters access to the Great Lakes -Because the U.S. president saw strategic value there during the cold war with the USSR
DNA barcoding
-Was initially used to identify invasive species -Is meant to identify species
The Chicago Sanitary and Ship canal
-Was the largest earth moving project in North America at the time -Helped to sanitize Chicago's water -Reversed the flow of the Chicago River
The food chain in Lake Powell
-Was very simple -Was predicted to collapse in less than a decade
The second set of barriers funded by Congress
-Were more powerful than the original -Included three clusters of electrodes -Was not turned on initially out of fear of detonating barges with flammable cargo
The diet of the round goby includes
-Young zebra and quagga mussels -Zooplankton -Eggs of other fish -Young of larger fish
Currently, the average number of trans-oceanic ships passing through the seaway each day is
2
Most foreign freighters sail out of the Great Lakes carrying grain, totaling what percentage of total grain exports for the U.S. and Canada?
2%
How much of the planet's available freshwater is found in the Great Lakes?
20%
Seiche
An extreme wave in the Great Lakes that is associated with rapid changed in wind and bio metric pressure.
Another ballast hitch-hiker, the Eurasian ruffe, became a very successful invader in the Great Lakes, largely due to
An extremely high reproductive rate
What is the process by which toxins reach higher levels in species that are higher up the food chain?
Bioaccumulation
Scientists reduce the lampreys population how?
By focusing on the creeks where they nest.
What do the Great Lakes not share with the ocean?
Downdrifts
The west-to-east flow of the lakes is due to the differences in what?
Elevation
Which lake has the highest seichal fluctuation
Erie
The Great Lakes region is uniquely positioned to stop future invasions because
Every overseas freighter must pass through the St. Lambert lock
Canada is supportive of efforts to close the Seaway to ocean-going freighters
False
The exorbitantly high cost of pumping water thousands of miles is the thing that prevents it from happening
False
When a bighead carp was caught beyond the barrier and just miles from Lake Michigan,
Five states took USCE and Illinois to court
Compared to the Atlantic, Pacific, and Gulf coasts, North America's 4th seacoast is unique in that
It has a single entry point for foreign freighters
When federal federal funding was halted for the carp-controlling sewage experiment, Arkansas Game and Fish
Let some of them go
The Wellend Canal can accomodate what type of ships?
Longer and wider ships
Why did the first European explorers to the great lakes turn back?
They encountered impossible rapids.
The drought in California is a national problem because
They grow 90% of the nation's produce
Whitefish were never a consumer of fish, probably because
They had no teeth
Invasive mussels were able to virtually take over Lake Mead's bed and canyon walls below the waterline in only two years because
They were able to reproduce rapidly in the warm climate
Lampreys first entered Lake Ontario how?
Through the Erie canal
At this point, the only mandated strategy for ships sailing from foreign ports into the Great Lakes is
To flush all of their ballast tanks mid-ocean
