Exam 2 Flashcards
(40 cards)
take aways from handout on BPA
- important to have perspective about things
- all substances are poisons. there is none which is not a poison. the right dose differentiates a poison from a remedy
- *look over underlined parts of article again
- there are chemicals that people are exposed to all of the time
- pollutant=contaminant
- -1. chemical not found in nature
- -2. chemical exceeds its natural concentration [mass/volume]
harm is determined by:
- dosage/response
- solubility
- persistance
- bioaccumulation
- biomagnification
- chemical interactions
what is dosage?
amount of exposure/time
types of exposure(3)
inhalation
ingestion
absorption (cutaneous)
what are the 4 things involved in risk assessment?
- data collection and analysis
- exposure assessment
- toxicity assessment
- risk characterization
key components of health risk assessment
s-list of emissions/effluents
-description of emission/effluent toxicity
-quantify maximum release rate
d-evaluation of release dispersion
r-description of environment around facility
limitations of health risk assessment
major scientific uncertainties
-emissions/effluent data
-methodology
only rough estimate of actual risk
-typically only considers human impact-synergistic effects
-no indirect impacts are investigated (only direct)
what is risk?
probability of suffering injury, disease, death, or other loss as a result of exposure to a hazard
what is hazard?
anything that can cause
(1) injury, disease, or death to humans
(2) damage to personal or public property
(3) deterioration or destruction of environmental components
classes of hazards/environmental habits? (4)
cultural
biological
physical-natural disasters
chemical-mining, refining, manufacturing
what is risk assessment?
an evaluation of the short term and long term risks associated with a particular activity or hazard, usually compared to benefits in a cost-benefit analysis
hazardous waste is…
- on EPA list (listed waste)
2. TICR (characteristic waste)
what does TICR stand for?
Toxicity Ignitability Corrosivity Reactivity (considered a hazardous waste if it exhibits one of these qualities)
why is a Childs risk greater than an adults?
- food, drink, and other intake is greater in children
- more direct contact w/ enviornment (outside play and fingers in mouth)
- less developed protective mechanisms
- rapid growth and development
4 things from his book “Principled plan of action by industry”
- operate legally and ethically
- educate employees of benefits and risks
- listen and respond approximately to public
- properly disseminate information to media
What produces public opposition?
dread intrusion involuntary proximity inadequate understanding of operation
what reduces public opposition?
onsite waste management/disposal local control local culture voluntary good community relations
Environmental Science Themes (AP)
- science is a process
- energy conversions underlie all ecological processes
- the earth itself is one interconnected system
- humans alter natural systems
- environmental problems have a cultural and social context
- human survival depends on developing practices that will achieve sustainable systems
what is the dirtiest fuel?
coal
what natural processes acted to dissipate the Ashlyn oil spill?
- volatilization
- mixing and dilution
- microbial metabolism
- adsorption
- sedimentation
volatilization
oil is volatile, it evaporates therefore, the concentration of oil in the water goes down
microbial metabolism
bugs eat the oil which makes the concentration of oil in water go down
adsorption
oils sticks to dirt, makes suspended sediment
sedimentation
when suspended sediment settles to the bottom of the river and gets the oil out of the water
