Final Part 3 Flashcards
What 1976 primary law governing the disposal of solid and hazardous waste is abbreviated RCRA?
The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act
What are the 3 types of solid waste management?
collection/disposal, source reduction, and recycling
Which type of solid waste management is the most common and economical method worldwide and involves landfills?
Disposal
What is the term for liquids created when water mixes with wastes and drains from beneath a landfill?
Leachates
What is the second most common method of disposal?
combustion (incineration)
What is the term for a solid waste or combination of solid wastes that is dangerous to human health and the environment?
Hazardous waste
What is the name for the strict system RCRA established to control hazardous wastes from generation to disposal?
cradle-to-grave regulation
What is the most common mean of hazardous waste management, handling 34% of hazardous waste?
Deep well injection
What is the best solution for hazardous waste management?
Hazardous Waste Recycling (source reduction)
Which type of hazardous waste management involves using microorganisms to destroy the hazardous substances?
bioremediation
When it comes to hazardous waste cleanup CERCLA created the priority list and makes responsible parties pay. What does CERCLA stand for?
Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980
USTs have a big proble with leakage which leads to concern about water contamination and buildup of gases. What are USTs?
Underground Storage Tanks
What is the term for abandoned industrial sites used for hazardous waste cleanup where cleanup and reuse are difficult?
Brownfields
What is the term for contamination of the air that interferes with the comfort, safety, and health of living organisms?
Air pollution
Who is especially susceptible to airborne pollutants?
children and elderly
What Act was passed by Congress in 1963, amended 3 times (70, 77, and 90), and sets limits on pollution? what are the pollutants of greatest concern called?
Clean Air Act;
criteria pollutants
T/F: Acid rain can be in snow, dew, drizzle, fog, or sleet.
True
What is caused by greenhouse gases such as chlorofluorocarbons and CO2?
Global warming
What are the major cause of ozone layer destruction?
CFCs
What is caused by a combination of NO+VOC+sunlight and is aka ground-level ozone?
Photo-chemical smog
The Clean Air Act of 1990 has severe monetary penalties for whom?
for plants that release excess pollutants
T/F: Indoor air pollution like radon, ETS, and asbestos can be more of threat than outdoor air pollution.
True
During the energy crisis of the 1970s, indoor air quality created an ill health condition called what?
Sick building syndrome
T/F: While 70% of the planet is covered in water, only 3% is fresh water, and only 1% is easily accessible.
True
What is the term for underground soil formations saturated with water and available for human use by pumping?
aquifers
What is the term for any physical or chemical change in the water that can harm living organisms or make it unfit for other uses?
Water pollution
What is the term for the single identifiable source that discharges pollutants into the water?
Point source pollution
What is the term for all pollution that occurs through runoff, seepage, or falling of pollutants into the water?
Nonpoint source pollution
What is the term for a water exposure in which at least 2 people have been epidemiologically linked to recreational or drinking water by location, time, and illness?
Waterborne disease outbreak (WBDO)
In the past decade 2 new pollutants have been detected in our waterways and are raising health concerns. They are abbreviated EDCs and PPCPs. What are they?
Endocrine-disrupting chemicals;
Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products
Which new type of pollutant is aka Xenoestrogens?
Endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs)
T/F: The Clean Water Act (1972) regulates point-source pollution.
True
T/F: The Clean Water Act (1972) regulates drinking water supply.
False; this is The Safe Drinking Water Act (1974)
