Environmental Quality Flashcards
The first Earth Day was
April 22, 1970
Rachel Carson
the author of Silent Spring, which was published in 1962. In the book, Carson examined the dangers of chemical pesticides, such as DDT, on plants, animals, and humans. The book greatly influenced the way people think about the environment.
Rachel Carson
the author of Silent Spring, which was published in 1962. In the book, Carson examined the dangers of chemical pesticides, such as DDT, on plants, animals, and humans. The book greatly influenced the way people think about the environment.
Metropolitan Water District of Southern California
Created in 1927 in order to create the Colorado River Aqueduct. It was built between 1933 and 1941. It ran a water pipeline to Los Angeles.
Effluent Standards
Are set restrictions on the discharge of pollutants into the environment. Effluent guidelines reduce the discharge of pollutants that have serious environmental impacts. The EPA has effluent guidelines for more than 50 categories.
Point Source Pollution
is discharged directly from a specific site, such as a sewage treatment plant or an industrial pipe.
Non-point Source Pollution
is contaminated runoff from many sources.
Aquifer
is one or more strata of rock or sediment that is saturated and sufficiently permeable to yield economically significant quantities of water to wells or springs. An aquifer includes any geologic material that is currently used or could be used as a source of water within the target distance limit.
Estuary
is an area where freshwater meets saltwater
The Clean Water Act
1972
The Act requires anyone wanting to discharge pollutants into a body of water to obtain a permit. It also regulates the amount of water that can be discharged and the types of pollutants that can be released.
Clean Air Act
1970 and made major revisions in 1977 and 1990. The Act has provisions that cut off federal funding for metropolitan areas that are not in attainment. In non-attainment areas, new pollution sources are allowed only if there is a reduction in pollutants greater than the pollutants contributed by the source.
The Act monitors six pollutants:
Ozone Particulate Matter Carbon Monoxide Nitrogen Dioxide Sulfur Dioxide Lead
Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD)
relates to air quality and requires that a project will not increase emissions above a specified PSD increment.
Ambient Air Quality Standards
the maximum air contaminant concentrations allowed in the ambient air
The National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA)
Created the Council of Enviro Quality
EPA requires Federal agencies to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for all major Federal actions that may significantly affect the quality of the human environment.
Can do a EA to see if a EIS is needed. FONSI means no EIS.
The Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899
Considered the oldest environmental law in the U.S
Prohibited the construction of any bridge, dam, dike, or causeway over any navigable waterway in the U.S. without Congressional approval.
The Act also required Congressional approval for all wharves, piers, or jetties, and the excavation or fill of navigable waters.
The Water Pollution Control Act of 1948
Allowed the Surgeon General of the Public Health Service, in cooperation with other entities, to prepare a program for eliminating or reducing the pollution of interstate waters/ tributaries and improving the sanitary condition of surface and underground waters.
The Water Quality Act of 1965
established the Water Pollution Control Administration within the Department of the Interior. This was the first time water quality was treated as an environmental concern rather than a public health concern.
The Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972
later amended in 1990, focused efforts to reduce polluted runoff in 29 coastal states.
The Federal Water Pollution Control Act of 1972
amended the Water Pollutant Act of 1948. The amendments broadened the government’s authority over water pollution and restructured the authority for water pollution under the Environmental Protection Agency. The Act changed the enforcement from water quality standards to regulate the number of pollutants being discharged from particular point sources.
The Endangered Species Act of 1973
provides protection of animal and plant species that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service designates as threatened or endangered. This act was later amended in 1988.
The Public Utility Regulatory Policy Act (PURPA) of 1978
promotes alternative energy sources, energy efficiency, and reduced dependence on foreign oil. It also created a market for non-utility power producers and requires competition in the utility industry.
The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA)
of 1980
created a $1.6 billion Superfund to clean up abandoned hazardous waste sites and requires major industries to report annual releases of toxic wastes into the air, water, or ground. Superfund is the common name for CERCLA. There are more than 1,200 superfund sites across the U.S. A tax on the petroleum and chemical industries provide funding to help pay for the cleanup of superfund sites.
The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) of 1976
provided EPA with the ability to control hazardous waste from the “cradle-to-grave.” This includes the generation, transportation, treatment, storage, and disposal of hazardous waste, as well as the management of non-hazardous solid wastes. The 1986 amendment covered environmental issues associated with underground storage tanks for fuel and other hazardous substances.
The Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976
provided EPA with responsibility for reporting, record-keeping and testing requirements, and restrictions relating to chemical substances and/or mixtures. Certain substances are generally excluded, including food, drugs, cosmetics, and pesticides.
Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA)
were originally passed in 1947 and established procedures for registering pesticides with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. FIFRA was rewritten in 1972 when it was amended by the Federal Environmental Pesticide Control Act (FEPCA). The law has been amended numerous times since 1972, including some significant amendments in the form of the Food Quality Protection Act (FQPA) of 1996. FIFRA currently mandates that EPA regulate the use and sale of pesticides to protect human health and the environment.
Safe Drinking Water Act
was passed in 1974 and has been amended several times since. This law protects both the sources of drinking water and the end product.
Brownfields
are “real property, the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse of which may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant. Cleaning up and reinvesting in these properties takes development pressures off of undeveloped, open land, and both improves and protects the environment.”
Watershed
A region drained by, or contributing water to, a surface water body.
What is the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ)?
The CEQA coordinates federal environmental efforts and works with federal agencies on the development of environmental policies and initiatives.
Environmental Assessment
is required to determine whether there is a significant environmental impact
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)
EIS is for federal actions significantly affecting the quality of the human environment. If the environmental assessment determines that there is a significant impact, then an environmental impact statement is required.
Scoping
Scoping is often the first contact between proponents of a proposal and the public. A scoping meeting introduces both sides of an issue and engages interested parties. The purpose of scoping is to assist the preparers of the EIS to explain the project to the public and affected agencies. The participants respond with their own concerns about significant issues and suggestions of alternatives
4 Sections of an EIS
1) Introduction, which includes a statement of the Purpose and Need of the Proposed Action;
2) Description of the Affected Environment;
Range of Alternatives to the proposed action.
3) Alternatives are considered the “heart” of the EIS;
4) Analysis of the environmental impacts of each of the possible alternatives.
5 topics each EIS must address
1) The probable impact of the proposed action;
2) Any adverse environmental effects that cannot be avoided;
3) Alternatives to the proposed action;
4) Relationship between local short-term uses of the environment and the maintenance and enhancement of long-term productivity of the land;
5) Any irreversible and irretrievable commitments of resources that would be involved in the proposed action.
Wrack
Algae, plant and animal material that accumulate on beaches at high water marks
Palastrine
swamp/marsh wetlands (non-tidal)
Lacastrine
lake
Littoral
intertidal shallow water zone
Oligotrophic
deep lake with few nutrients little organic matter