Environmental Management Systems

Question 1

National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)

Answer 1

Requires an environmental impact statement for any federally funded project

Question 2

Waste management heirarchy

Answer 2

source reduction, recycling, waste treatment, secure disposal, direct release

Question 3

Source reduction

Answer 3

any practice that reduces the amount of hazardous substance entering the waste stream prior to recycling, treatment, or disposal

Question 4

Waste audit

Answer 4

materials accounting in process lines

Question 5

Emission inventory

Answer 5

direct releases through fugitive and secondary sources

Question 6

A life cycle assessment (LCA) can be broken into…

Answer 6

… an inventory of all material, energy, emission, waste flows associated with a product, an EIA of these flows, and a feedback mechanism to assist in choosing between alternative products/processes to address negative environmental impacts

Question 7

Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)

Answer 7

screening, scoping, EIS preparation, review

Question 8

Screening

Answer 8

determining which projects warrant and EIA

Question 9

Scoping

Answer 9

identifying key impacts that will form the basis of a study

Question 10

Acceptable level of carcinogenic risk

Answer 10

10^-6

Question 11

For non-carcinogenic risk, a hazard index greater than ___ is considered unaccepted

Answer 11

one

Question 12

Background risk

Answer 12

risk due to all of the environmental factors to which the average person is exposed

Question 13

Risk assessment

Answer 13

data collection/evaluation, toxicity assessment, exposure assessment, risk characterization, and risk management

Question 14

LD50

Answer 14

dose that is lethal for 50% of test population

Question 15

LOAEL

Answer 15

lowest observable adverse effect level

Question 16

NOAEL

Answer 16

no observable adverse effect level

Question 17

Sound is a result of…

Answer 17

… the vibration of solids or dynamics of fluids as they interact with solid objects which cause minute pressure variations detectable by the ear

Question 18

Ionizing radiation

Answer 18

potential for cellular damage

Question 19

Radioactivity

Answer 19

the phenomenon whereby an unstable isotope undergoes nuclear disintegration called decay which release a particle or electromagnetic radiation to carry off excess energy

Question 20

Classes of decay products

Answer 20

Alpha particles, beta particles, gamma radiation

Question 21

Alpha particles

Answer 21

extremely high energy, but cannot penetrate dense materials and can be shielded by ordinary clothing

Question 22

Beta particles

Answer 22

fast-moving electrons, greater penetrating potential than alpha particles

Question 23

Gamma ray emission

Answer 23

release of electromagnetic radiation energy as newly formed elements settle into more stable states

Question 24

Half-life

Answer 24

time required for 50% of the nuclei to decay

Question 25

Roentgen equivalent man (REM)

Answer 25

an indication of the extent of biological injury that is probable from a dose of a specific type of radiation to a specific tissue or organ