ENGR202 Final Flashcards
What are the four main human activities that accelerate environmental change?
- Land Use
- Food Supply
- Energy Supply
- Waste and Emissions
What is the most widespread human cause for accelerating environmental change?
Land use
Changes in the environment can be classified into two categories. What are they?
- Changes resulting from land usage (including depletion of natural resources)
- Changes brought by emissions or byproduct residues of industrial operations and products.
What is the triple bottom line?
Environment, Economy, Equity
or
People, Planet Profit
Define Sustainable Development
Meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
What must Sustainable Development encompass?
- Reusing and circulating waste
- Minimize materials used to fulfil a purpose
- Prevent and reduce the release of hazardous substances
- Minimize energy consumption and waste heat discharge
Describe the difference between Sustainability and Resilience
Sustainability: A systems ability to maintain or support a process overtime
Resilience: A systems ability to deal and adapt to change
What is carrying capacity?
The number of individuals that can be supported by a system. In excess of this is an “overshoot”
What is an ecological footprint?
Stress placed on the ecosystem by an individual or group
What is the tipping point?
A critical point, beyond which an irreversible change and establishes a new ‘normal’
What are the three Environmental Legislations in Canada? And what do they do?
- Canadian Environmental Protection act (1999)
- Pollution prevention
- Protection of human health and environment - Fisheries Act (1985)
- Protection of water and waterways - Impact Assessment Act (2019)
- When and how to conduct an impact assessment
What does LCA stand for?
Life Cycle Assessment
What is LCA?
A decision support tool to identify and analyze the environmental impacts and burdens or something.
What are three sources of pollution?
-Natural (volcanic eruptions)
- Organic (Sewage)
- Synthetic (Fossil Fuels, human activities)
Name the seven types of toxins
- Allergens (activate immune system)
- Depressants (Suppress immune system)
- Mutagens (damage genetic material)
- Carcinogens (increase risk of cancer)
- Teratogens (causes abnormalities in embryos)
- Neurotoxins (attacks nerve cells)
- Endocrine Disruptors (interfere with normal hormone function)
What are the environmental impacts on human health?
- Acute
- Chronic
- Carcinogenic
What are the two environmental impacts on humans?
- Human Health
- Human Welfare
Name the six major pollutants (criteria air pollutants)
- Particulate Matter (PM)
- Sulfure Dioxide
- Carbon Monoxide
- Nitrogen Dioxide
- Lead
- Ground Level Ozone
What are the two categories of air pollutants?
- Primary
- Secondary
What is a primary pollutant?
They are emitted directly from a source
What is a secondary pollutant?
Not directly emitted. Forms when primary pollutants react in the atmosphere.
What are some PM sources?
- Incomplete fuel combustion
- industrial processes
- dust from unpaved roads
What are some PM impacts?
Health:
- respiratory/cardio diseases
- damage to lung tissue
- carcinogenesis
- Premature death
Other:
- reduce visibility
- damage to materials
- dust
What does sulfur dioxide smell like?
Fireworks
What are two components of acid rain?
Sulphuric acid and nitric acid
What are sources of SOx
- Combustion of fossil fuels
- oil refineries, cement
What are some impacts of SOx?
- Respiratory illnesses
- Sulfur Trioxide
- Acid rain
What causes CO?
- Incomplete combustion of fossil fuels
What are some impacts of CO?
- Absorbed by hemoglobin
- Chokes off blood’s oxygen delivery system
-Long term heart damage
How is NOx produced?
- Burning of fossil fuels
What are some impacts of NOx?
- Acid rain
- Irritates lungs
When was lead in gasoline banned?
1980s
Why was lead added to gasoline?
It improved the efficiency/performance of the engine.
What are the conditions of smog formation?
- high intensity solar radiation with a high UV
- Reactive nitrogen oxides
- Reactive VOCs
What are VOCs
Volatile Organic Compounds
What are some impacts of Ozone
-Damage to construction materials
- Makes animals and plants more vulnerable to disease
How many substances has the EPA deemed hazardous?
187
What does the EPA stand for?
Environmental Protection Agency
What are some consequences of acidification?
- Fish Death
- Forest Degradation
- Depletion of Soils
- Plant Death
- Contamination of Groundwater
What are some consequences of ozone depletion?
- Increased risk of cancer and blindness
- More UV-B
- Reduces immune function
- Harms algae/ phytoplankton
What % of water is available?
2.5% of water is freshwater. 69% of that is is locked in glaciers. Only 1% is available in surface/other freshwater sources
What is water stress?
The ratio of water consumption to its supply
What areas in Canada are enduring water stress?
Ontario
The Prairie Region
What are the three categories of water pollutants?
- Conventional Pollutants
- Priority Pollutants
- Non-conventional Pollutants
What are Conventional water pollutants?
- Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD)
- Total suspended solids
- Fecal Coliform Bacteria
- pH
- Oil and grease
What is BOD?
Biochemical oxygen demand represents the amount of oxygen consumed by micro-organisms to break down organic matter
What is the formula for BOD measurement?
BOD 5 = [(D1-D2)-(B1-B2) F] /P
f = (V2-V1)/V2 P= V1/V2
What are Total Suspended Solids?
The concentration of small particles suspended in water.
What are some consequences of TSS?
- Less light can reach the water
- Raises water temperature which reduces dissolved oxygen
What is Fecal Coliform Bacteria used to do?
They are employed as markers for other bacteria. If fecal coliform are found, it is considered that other bacteria are also present
How does pH negatively impact the environment?
It hurts organisms and makes contaminants more mobile and easier for plants and animals to absorb
What are the two major oil spill incidents?
Exxon Valdez (1989)
- Near Alaska
- 11 million gallons of oil
- Wildlife casualties
BP Deepwater Horizon Platform (2010)
- Human and wildlife casualties
- 134 millions gallons
- clean-up still ongoing
How many priority pollutants has the EPA published?
126
What do priority pollutants include?
- Heavy Metals
- Volatile Hydrocarbons
- Pesticides
What are some non-conventional pollutants?
- Colour: Dyes
- Salt: Snow melting
- Thermal Pollution
What is Eutrophication?
When there is an excess in nutrients for algae. Increase in BOD but less oxygen is available.
What % of CO2 emissions are absorbed by the ocean?
26%
What are the two categories of land waste materials?
- Hazardous wastes
- Non-hazardous wastes
What are the characteristics of hazardous wastes?
- Ignitability (quickly burn or produce fire)
- Corrosivity (Erode metals)
- Reactivity (Capacity to react violently or to explode)
- Toxicity ( Endanger water sources and human health)
What are the main sources of municipal solid waste?
Municipal Solid Wastes (MSW)
- paper
- plastics
- food/yard wastes
Where did Canada send their waste until 2018?
China
What are the two levels of soil pollution?
- Threshold value
- Action value
What is the Threshold value?
The concentration of the pollutant that below which the soil is considered to be safe
What is the Action Value?
The concentration at which the risks of hazards become too high and the site must be considered as contaminated
What process do we use for Nuclear Energy?
Nuclear Fission
What element do we primarily use for Nuclear Energy?
Uranium, because it is relatively easy to split apart.
What two isotopes is natural uranium ore made of?
- 0.7% U235
- 99.3% U238
What is the Mass Defect?
The difference between the actual atomic mass and the predicted mass (calculated by adding the mass of protons, electrons and neutrons)
What is the Binding Energy?
The energy consumed when the protons and neutrons come together to overcome the force of repulsion.
What is the formula for the correlation between the binding energy and mass defect?
🔼M = (mp + mn + me) -Ma
E=MC^2
What classifies a radioactive element as unstable?
If the binding energy is insufficient to keep the nuclear together. The protons and neutrons are attempting to become stable.
What is the half life formula?
N(t) = No(1/2) ^ (t/t1/2)
How do you dispose of radioactive wastes?
There is no way other than burying it somewhere where it will not be disturbed for hundreds of thousands of years
What are the four parts of radioactive wastes?
- High Level Wastes (spent fuels from nuclear reactors)
- Transuranic Wastes (nuclear weapon production)
- Low Level Wastes ( clothing worn in a power plant, protective gloves, test tubes etc)
- Uranium Mine/Mill Tailings
What are the two categories of natural resources? Please describe each one
- Renewable: Renewable in short periods of time ( a human lifetime) like solar, wind or hydro .
- Non-renewable: Limited amounts. metals, oil, minerals, natural gas, coal, uranium etc
What is the difference between climate and weather?
Weather is the short-term variation in temperature, precipitation and wind that occurs day to day
Climate is the long term trends in these atmospheric conditions measured over decades, centuries or more.
What does IPCC stand for?
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
What does the IPCC do?
Reviews the scientific data about climate change.