Question 1

The atmosphere now has less carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, and lead than it once did.

Accepted Answer

Efforts to reduce air pollution, such as regulations on emissions from vehicles and industrial sources, have led to a decrease in these pollutants over the years.

Question 2

By the year 2005, thousands of waste sites still had not been treated.

Accepted Answer

By 2005, many waste sites, particularly in the United States, were still awaiting cleanup due to the complexity and cost of remediation efforts.

Question 3

Affected businesses are the only ones that complain about the cost and complexity of environmental regulations.

Accepted Answer

While affected businesses often voice concerns about the cost and complexity of environmental regulations, other stakeholders such as industry groups, trade associations, and even some policymakers may also express similar concerns.

Question 4

Summarize what the authors say about our efforts to clean up the environment.

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Question 5

What are the three difficult questions that must be addressed in relation to global warming?

Accepted Answer

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Question 6

A company that reduces polluting emissions by more than the law requires can sell that amount to another company as an offset.

Accepted Answer

This is known as a carbon offset or emissions trading, where companies that reduce emissions beyond legal requirements can sell the excess reduction as credits to other companies that need to meet regulatory limits.

Question 7

Interest group politics is laced with compromises. The controversy over acid rain illustrates this point. Discuss the political advantages of the 1977 compromise on scrubbers and how the 1990 revision also reflects compromises by all sides.

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Question 8

Identify and explain the three types of pollution "incentives" created by the Carter administration.

Accepted Answer

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Question 9

Some of the weaknesses of the Superfund resulted from rapid turnover in Superfund management.

Accepted Answer

Rapid turnover in Superfund management can lead to inconsistencies in policy implementation and decision-making, which can weaken the effectiveness of the program.

Question 10

It is easier to gauge the success of programs designed to clean up water than those designed to clean up air.

Accepted Answer

Measuring the success of air and water cleanup programs both present challenges, but air quality improvements can often be more directly measured through changes in pollutant concentrations, while water quality can be affected by numerous variables, making it complex to assess.

Question 11

Many of the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) rules have recently been replaced by incentives that encourage environmental planning by companies.

Accepted Answer

The passage states that "Many of the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) rules have recently been replaced by incentives that encourage environmental planning by companies." This means that the EPA is now using incentives to encourage companies to plan for environmental protection, rather than relying on rules.

Question 12

Discuss how environmental policy is shaped by the unique features of U.S. politics and the consequences of these features.

Accepted Answer

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Question 13

Explain what happened to Cap and Trade after it passed in the House of Representatives.

Accepted Answer

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Question 14

Explain why environmental policy is so controversial in the United States.

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Question 15

Explain how the environmental movement was created by entrepreneurial politics.

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Question 16

The EPA's goal of eliminating all pollutants entering our waterways by 1985 was utterly unrealistic.

Accepted Answer

The goal set by the EPA was ambitious and faced numerous challenges, including technological, economic, and political obstacles, making it unrealistic to achieve by 1985.

Question 17

A bubble is the total amount of air pollution that can come from a given factory.

Accepted Answer

A bubble is a legal term that refers to the total amount of air pollution that a factory is allowed to emit.

Question 18

Identify four types of politics and link them with the specific environmental topics discussed in this chapter.

Accepted Answer

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Question 19

Offsets, bubbles, and banks are part of the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) command-and-control strategy of pollution control.

Accepted Answer

Offsets, bubbles, and banks are part of the EPA's market-based approach to pollution control, not the command-and-control strategy.

Question 20

What are some of the potential negative consequences of significant increases in global temperatures?

Accepted Answer

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Quiz 21: Environmental Policy