SCIE 1P50 Final Exam Flashcards
What does REE stand for?
Rare earth elements
What does REM stand for?
rare earth metals
How many rare earth metals exist?
17
Name 3 types of REEs
lanthanides, candium and yttrium
In what form are REEs mined?
as mixed ores
What country is the main supplier of REEs and what percent of REEs do they produce?
China, 95%
Name some products REEs are used to make
electronic devices, rechargeable batteries, guidance systems, solar panels, wind turbines
What is lanthanum used for?
hybrid engines, metal alloys
What is erbium used for?
optical fibres, lasers
What is dysprosium used for?
permanent magnets, hybrid engines
What is neodymium used for?
hard drives, headphones, hybrid engines
What is europium used for?
Red colour for television and computer screens
In what form are rare earth metals found when mining them?
small concentrations in ore deposits, usually with several REMs mixed together
Describe the process of mining REMs
Many processing steps are taken in the separation and removal of unwanted elements, especially uranium and thorium, which are radioactive.
What are the main routes taken to produce the final product when mining REMs?
acid/base leaching and conversion to oxides/halides
Where are REMs most commonly mined?
In tailings ponds in Baotou, China
What does WEEE stand for?
Waste Electric & Electronic Equipment
What is the WEEE?
The largest growing solid waste sector
What was discussed at the Basel Convention?
what should be done with hazardous waste
How are toxic wastes typically disposed of, especially prior to the Basel Convention?
“Toxic traders” in developed countries usually ship their toxic wastes to developing countries and Eastern Europe
What was the result of an increase of environmental regulations in 1980?
The cost of hazardous waste disposal rose dramatically
Name the four characteristics of hazardous waste
ignitability/flammability, reactivity, corrosivity, and toxicity
Name four shapes/forms of hazardous waste
liquids, solids, contained gases, sludge
What came out of the Basel Convention?
A global legal agreement on “the control of trans-boundary movements of hazardous wastes and their disposal.”
When were the rules of the Basel Convention adopted, and then when did they enter into force?
adopted in 1989, entered into force 1992
How many countries are currently participating in the Basel Convention? Name one country who is NOT participating.
181, the US is not participating
Why is the Basel Convention not as effective as it could be?
Its rules are not enforced, as the convention does not closely monitor the activity of countries involved
Name the 3 objectives of the Basel Convention’s rules?
- Reduce trans-boundary movements of hazardous waste
- Dispose of hazardous wastes as close as possible to the source of generation
- Minimize the generation of hazardous wastes
What five kinds of waste did the Basel Convention cover?
Toxic wastes, corrosive waste, ignitable waste, reactive waste and eco-toxic waste
Define toxic waste and give examples
wastes which are harmful or fatal when ingested, inhaled or absorbed through the skin, e.g. spent cyanide solutions, waste pesticides, lead, mercury, chromium
Define corrosive wastes and give examples
acids or alkalis that are capable of dissolving human flesh and corroding metals such as storage tanks and drums, e.g. liquor from steel manufacture, and acid from metal cleaning processes including ferric chloride from printed circuit board manufacture
Define ignitable wastes and give examples
wastes which can cause fires under certain conditions or are spontaneously combustible, e.g. waste oil, used solvents, organic cleaning materials, paint waste
Define reactive wastes and give examples
wastes which are unstable under “normal conditions”. They can cause explosions, toxic fumes, gases or vapours, e.g. peroxide solutions, hypochlorite solutions/solids, munitions, explosives
Define eco-toxic wastes and give examples
wastes which are harmful to other species or to the ecological integrity of their habitats, e.g. heavy metals, detergents, oils, soluble salts
Name five environmental legislative acts in Canada that pertain to e-waste
Transportation of Dangerous Goods Act, Canadian Environmental Protection Act, Clean Air Act, Canada Water Act, Ocean Dumping Control Act
How and where in Canada is electronic waste regulated?
Responsibility for regulating e-waste is provincial, and is not regulated in any territories. The “Take Back” program exists in a number of provinces.
What three methods are used to manage toxic waste production, and which is most effective?
source reduction (most effective), conversion to less hazardous materials, and long-term storage
What field of study is involved in the process of source reduction of e-waste?
green chemistry
Define green chemistry, give examples and state its purpose.
Green chemistry is the redesigning of chemical processing. For example, Apple and HP have reduced/eliminated the use of BPAs in their products. The purpose of green chemistry is to reduce environmental harm.
What is material conversion, how is it done, and what are some examples?
The reduction of compounds to less dangerous compounds using high temperature incineration. Ash left over from the incineration must still be disposed of.
E.g. PCBs are converted to water and CO2
Describe the long term storage of e-waste
Hazardous wastes are stored in landfills in accordance with strict environmental criteria and design. Leaching into local soil and water must be prevented.
What is the goal of the Extended Producer Responsibility Principle?
To ensure that businesses who place products on the market take responsibility for those products in terms of wastes once the products reach the end of their life, e.g. send your cell phone back to the company when it is no longer usable.
What is urban mining and why is it so prevalent?
Urban mining is the use of spent electronics as a resource. It is effective as 1 tonne of e-waste material contains as much gold as 17 tonnes of unprocessed ore. E-waste also contains silver, palladium, copper, and other REEs, although they can be hard to remove.
In what city is e-waste mining highly prevalent? How much e-waste mining is done here?
Guiyu, where 1.5 million pounds of junked computers, cell phones, and other devices are dismantled every year in small family-run workshops. Also takes place in Agboggloshie, Ghana.
What are 3 problematic aspects of urban/e-waste mining?
- lead extraction - saudering gives off toxic fumes
- e-waste is illegally imported
- process is very informal
What contaminants were found to be above environmental limits in the soils near Longtang, China?
Cadmium, lead, and mercury in paddy and vegetable soils, and cadmium also in farmland soils
According to the UN, what human rights exist in terms of the environment?
Every person has the right to an ecologically sound environment, sustainable development and peace. They state that these three rights are interdependent and indivisible.
Define biotechnology
the material application of biological science to create products derived from organisms
define transgenic organism
an organism containing DNA from another species
define transgenes
genes moved between organisms
What developments has biotechnology helped us to make?
creation of medicines, pollution clean-up, gaining understanding of cancer causes, dissolving blood clots after heart attacks, making higher quality beer and cheese
How is genetic engineering SIMILAR to traditional agricultural practices?
It alters gene pools for preferred characteristics and applies to both plants and animals.
How is genetic engineering DIFFERENT from traditional agricultural practices?
- Traditional breeding uses genes from within the same species
- Selective breeding (traditional) deals with whole organisms, not just individual genes
- In traditional breeding, genes come together on their own
What is genetic engineering?
laboratory manipulation of genetic material
what is recombinant DNA?
DNA patched together from the DNA of multiple organisms. Genetic modification of organisms depends on recombinant DNA.
What products are being highly affected by the use of genetic engineering?
soy, corn, cotton, canola
What are 4 impacts of using genetically modified crops?
- dangerous to human health
- escaping transgenes could pollute ecosystems and damage non-target organisms
- pests could evolve resistance
- could ruin integrity of native ancestral races (we become picky about wanting perfect, uniform looking products)
Why is it a problem that GMOs are ruining the integrity of native ancestral races?
If we stop buying native ancestral races, they could go extinct, thereby reducing genetic variation, as ancestral races interbreed with closely related wild plants
What is the problem with allegations made that GMOs are problematic?
There are not necessarily good studies done to back up this opinion
What four arguments do GM crops supporters make?
- GM crops pose no ill health effects
- They benefit the environment by using less herbicides
- herbicide-resistant crops encourage no-till farming
- they reduce carbon emissions by needing few fossil fuel burning tractors and sequestering carbon in soil by no till farming
What did Monsanto have Percy Schmeiser charged with?
Reusing or growing patented seeds without a contract
What did Percy Schmeiser claim was the reason why Monsanto’s seeds were founding growing in his field?
The seeds blew into his field from the neighbour’s adjacent field
What was the outcome of Percy Schmeiser’s hearing?
He was initially fined $238,000 when the courts sided with Monsanto, but he appealed to the Supreme Court of Canada and was exempted from the fine because he in no way benefited from the seed
Which nation was the first to prohibit patents on higher organisms? (e.g. mice)
Canada
Where was the documentary “Bitter Seeds” shot?
India
In “Bitter Seeds,” what kind of seeds were Indian farmers being sold and by what company?
Bt cotton seeds sold by Monsanto
How did Monsanto negatively impact the lives of Indian farmers by marketing Bt seeds to them with false advertising?
Monsanto lied to the farmers about how the crops would need to be treated, so the farmers:
1) ended up borrowing money to purchase new seeds every year, fertilizers, etc.
2) got into debt as Bt seeds cost more but do not yield more
3) lost their sense of livelihood when their farms got taken away by the money lender, resulting in high suicide rates
What type of GM salmon does AquaAdvantage produce which has not yet been approved by the FDA?
AquaBounty GM salmon
How are AquaBounty GM salmon made? what is the purpose of this modification?
DNA from ocean pout (eel) is added to Chinook salmon to let the salmon continually produce growth hormone no matter what the temperature is (all year round), which makes the salmon cheaper to farm
How long does it take for a regular Chinook salmon to mature compared to AquaBounty GM salmon?
Chinook = about 7 years
GM salmon = about 3 years
How long has the FDA been evaluating GM salmon?
For the past 19 years
What is a Marine Protected Area?
A no take, or limited take zone for fishing
What are 2 problems involved with Marine Protected Areas?
1) Fish Move in and out of the protected area
2) There is overfishing on the periphery of the area
How can we prevent the accumulation of Marine Garbage? (2 points)
1) Reduce, Reuse, Recylce
2) Use Biodegradable plastics
What are 2 problems with Biodegradable Plastics?
1) Need international agreements
2) Plastics still degrade into tiny pieces
When a species becomes overfished what do companies do?
Target another species of fish causing it to decline as well
What happens when large predator fish are removed? Give an example.
Removing the predatory fish simplify trophice levels
Eg. Salmon Fisheries in BC indicat 90% decline in catch (2009)
What are issues caused by the dumping of plastics into the sea?
Harms wildlife
eg. Turtles mistake plastic bags for Jellyfish
What issues are found with driftnetting and what actions are being taken?
Drowns dolphins, turtles and seals
Banned or restricted by many nations
What is By-Catch?
The accidental capture of animals that were not being fished