Unit 8 MCQ Flashcards
Describe Point Source Pollution
Pollution from a single, identifiable source (e.g., factory smokestack, sewage pipe).
Explain Nonpoint Source Pollution
Pollution from multiple, dispersed sources (e.g., urban runoff, agricultural runoff).
Provide an example of Point Source Pollution
Animal waste runoff from a CAFO (ammonia, fecal coliform bacteria).
Give an example of Nonpoint Source Pollution
Urban runoff (motor oil, nitrate fertilizer, road salt, sediment).
Define the difference between Pollutants and Pollution
Pollutants are specific chemicals with environmental effects, while pollution is a broad term for harmful substances.
List some Mitigation Strategies for pollution
Regulations, pollution control technology, better waste management.
Describe the Range of Tolerance in organisms
Organisms have limits for abiotic conditions (pH, temperature, salinity, sunlight, nutrients).
Explain the effects of Acid Rain
Causes aluminum toxicity and blood osmolarity disruption, leading to species decline.
What is Coral Bleaching?
Coral loses zooxanthellae due to warming temperatures and pollutants, leading to stress and vulnerability.
Identify Human Impacts on Coral Reefs
Overfishing, bottom trawling, greenhouse gas emissions, sediment pollution, toxicants, nutrients.
Define Endocrine Disruptors
Chemicals that interfere with hormonal systems (e.g., atrazine, DDT, phthalates).
Describe the effects of Mercury as a pollutant
Neurotoxicant, endocrine disruptor, damages the nervous system, accumulates in fetal brain.
Explain the effects of Lead on health
Neurotoxicant, endocrine disruptor, found in old paint, pipes, and soil from past vehicle emissions.
What are the effects of Arsenic?
Carcinogenic, endocrine disruptor, from natural rock dissolution, pesticides, coal combustion.
Define Wetlands
Areas with soil submerged/saturated in water for at least part of the year.
List Ecosystem Services provided by Wetlands
Habitat provision, flood absorption, water filtration, nutrient cycling, CO2 sequestration.
Identify threats to Wetlands
Pollutants, development, water diversions, overfishing.
Explain the process of Eutrophication
Excess nutrients (N/P) cause algae blooms, blocking sunlight, leading to hypoxia and dead zones.
Describe cultural eutrophication.
Human activities increase nitrogen and phosphorus levels, causing excessive algae growth and oxygen depletion.
Explain oligotrophic waterways.
These waterways have low nutrient levels, a stable algae population, and high dissolved oxygen.
Define dead zones in aquatic environments.
Dead zones are areas with hypoxia (less than 3.0 ppm dissolved oxygen), unable to support most aquatic life.
How does temperature affect oxygen solubility in water?
There is an inverse relationship: as water temperature increases, dissolved oxygen decreases.
Describe thermal pollution and its effects.
Thermal pollution occurs when heat released into water negatively affects organisms, increasing respiration rates and reducing available oxygen.
Identify common sources of thermal pollution.
Common sources include power plants, steel mills, paper mills, manufacturing plants, urban stormwater runoff, and nuclear power plants.
Explain the purpose of cooling towers in power plants.
Cooling towers or ponds cool steam back into water and hold warmed water before returning it to surface waters.
Define Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs).
POPs are synthetic, long-lasting compounds that do not break down easily and accumulate in water, soil, and animal fat.
How do POPs affect animals and humans?
POPs accumulate in fat tissues and can disrupt brain function, reproductive systems, and cause long-term health issues.
List examples of Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs).
Examples include DDT, PCBs, PBDEs, BPA, dioxins, phthalates, perchlorates, and pesticides.
Identify the sources of Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs).
Sources include industrial waste, pesticides, and medications like steroids and antibiotics that pass through human bodies into sewage and water.
Explain bioaccumulation.
Bioaccumulation is the process where fat-soluble compounds like POPs build up in the cells and fat tissues of organisms over time.
Define biomagnification.
Biomagnification is the increasing concentration of toxic compounds as they move up the food chain.
Describe the impact of DDT on ecosystems.
DDT persists in water sediments and biomagnifies, causing reproductive failure in birds, such as the thinning of eggshells.
How does methylmercury biomagnify in ecosystems?
Methylmercury biomagnifies as it moves up the food chain, leading to higher concentrations in top predators.
Describe the process of methylmercury formation and its impact on marine life.
Methylmercury is converted from mercury in water and biomagnifies through the food web, affecting large predators like tuna, sharks, and whales.
Explain the effects of methylmercury and persistent organic pollutants (POPs) on human health.
They cause nervous system damage, disrupt reproductive systems, and affect developing fetuses.
Define Municipal Solid Waste (MSW).
MSW refers to trash or solid waste from cities, including households, businesses, and schools.
How is e-waste defined and what hazards does it contain?
E-waste is discarded electronics like old computers and phones that contain hazardous materials like lead, cadmium, and mercury.
Describe the features of a sanitary landfill.
A landfill designed with features to prevent pollution, including clay/plastic liners, leachate collection systems, and methane recovery systems.
Identify the main problems associated with landfills.
Landfills can cause groundwater contamination, release greenhouse gases (methane, CO2), and contribute to local environmental and health issues.
Explain the NIMBY effect in relation to waste management.
‘Not In My Back Yard’ is the phenomenon where communities resist having landfills located near them due to smell, pollution risks, and environmental concerns.
What is incineration and what are its potential benefits and drawbacks?
Incineration is the burning of waste to reduce volume, which can generate electricity but also releases pollutants like CO and heavy metals.
Describe the consequences of illegal ocean dumping.
Illegal ocean dumping, especially of plastic, can create large garbage patches in the ocean, causing harm to marine life through suffocation and entanglement.
What are the Three Rs in waste management?
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.
How does reducing consumption serve as a sustainable waste reduction method?
Reducing consumption decreases resource harvesting and energy use in creating, packaging, and shipping goods.
Give an example of how to reduce consumption in daily life.
Using a metal water bottle to reduce plastic use or walking/biking to reduce gasoline use.
Explain why reusing items is considered more sustainable than recycling.
Reusing doesn’t require energy to create a new product.
Provide an example of reusing in everyday practices.
Buying second-hand clothes or washing plastic containers for reuse.
Define recycling and its purpose in waste management.
Recycling involves processing and converting solid waste into new products, like turning glass into new glass or plastic into fabric.
Discuss why recycling is considered the least sustainable of the Three Rs.
Recycling requires energy to process materials into new products, making it less sustainable compared to reducing and reusing.
Describe the energy requirements of recycling.
Recycling requires significant energy to process and convert waste materials.
Explain the advantages of recycling.
Recycling reduces demand for new materials, reduces energy use, and reduces landfill volume.
Identify the disadvantages of recycling.
Recycling is costly, requires energy, and can lead to materials being thrown away if not properly sorted.
Define composting.
Composting is the process of decomposing organic matter (food scraps, paper, yard waste) under controlled conditions to produce compost, which reduces landfill volume and provides rich soil.
How can improper composting affect the environment?
Improper composting can produce a foul smell and attract pests.
What is e-waste?
E-waste refers to waste from electronics like phones and computers, which may contain harmful metals like lead and mercury.
Explain the environmental issues associated with e-waste.
E-waste can leach toxic metals into soil and groundwater if improperly disposed of and is often recycled in developing nations under unsafe conditions.
Define waste-to-energy.
Waste-to-energy is a process of incinerating waste to reduce volume and generate electricity through combustion.
How does the waste-to-energy process generate electricity?
Burning waste generates heat, which turns water into steam to drive a turbine and produce electricity.
Describe the primary treatment process in sewage treatment.
During primary treatment, large debris like trash and sediment are physically removed through screens or grates.
What occurs during secondary treatment in sewage treatment?
In secondary treatment, organic matter is broken down by bacteria in an aerobic process requiring oxygen.
Explain the purpose of tertiary treatment in sewage treatment.
Tertiary treatment involves chemical treatments that remove remaining pollutants like nitrates and phosphates.
What is effluent in the context of sewage treatment?
Effluent is the liquid waste discharged from a sewage treatment plant into surface water.
Define sludge in sewage treatment.
Sludge is the solid waste that collects at the bottom of treatment tanks, which is then further processed or disposed of.
Identify a major issue with sewage treatment during heavy rains.
Combined sewage and stormwater systems can cause wastewater treatment plants to overflow, releasing raw sewage into surface waters.
What does LD50 represent?
LD50 is the dose of a chemical that kills 50% of the test population.
Describe a dose-response curve.
A dose-response curve is a graph that shows the relationship between the dose of a chemical and the effect on the organism, usually mortality.
Describe the threshold in a dose-response curve.
The lowest dose where a toxic effect begins to occur.
Define ED50 in toxicology.
The dose of a chemical that causes a non-lethal effect (e.g., infertility, paralysis) in 50% of the test population.
Explain the difference between acute and chronic studies.
Acute studies are short-term, while chronic studies measure long-term effects, like developmental impacts.
What is synergism in the context of pollutants?
The interaction between two or more substances causing a greater effect than the sum of each alone.
Provide an example of synergism related to health.
Asthma caused by particulate matter from coal power plants combined with the effects of COVID-19.
Identify the routes of exposure for pollutants.
The ways pollutants enter the body, such as through water, air, food, or contact with surfaces.
Define dysentery and its causes.
A bacterial infection caused by contaminated food or water, leading to dehydration and death if untreated.
What is mesothelioma and its cause?
A cancer caused by exposure to asbestos, affecting the lungs, heart, or abdomen.
Describe what a pathogen is.
A living organism that causes an infectious disease, such as a virus, bacteria, or parasite.
What is a vector in the context of infectious diseases?
An organism, like a mosquito, that carries and transmits pathogens to humans.
Explain how climate change affects the spread of infectious diseases.
Warmer temperatures allow pathogens and their vectors to spread to regions that were previously too cold.
Define malaria and its primary transmission method.
A parasitic infection transmitted by mosquitoes, causing flu-like symptoms and death in children under 5, primarily in sub-Saharan Africa.
What is West Nile virus and its effects?
A virus transmitted by mosquitoes that causes brain inflammation, often leading to death.
Describe Zika virus and its impact on infants.
A virus transmitted by mosquitoes, causing birth defects like abnormally small heads in babies.
What is tuberculosis (TB) and how is it transmitted?
A bacterial infection primarily affecting the lungs, transmitted through respiratory droplets, and treatable with antibiotics.
