Quiz 13: Industrial Pollution and Environmental Regulation

Superfund refers to a federal program that was set up in 1980 to clean up toxic waste sites.

Disease caused by industrial pollution is far more significant than disease caused by older,non-industrial forms of pollution.

One disability-adjusted life year (DALY)equals one lost year of healthy life.

The ecosystem is home to multiple biospheres.

Nonpolluting economic growth that raises standards of living without depleting the planet's resources of the earth is called sustainable development.

According to the theory of dualism,humans and nature are one.

According to the theory of land ethic,humans are part of an ethical community that includes not only other human beings but all elements of the natural environment.

When Congress passes an environmental law,Environmental Protection Agency employees write the detailed,specific rules needed to make it work.

The largest source of carbon monoxide is electric utilities burning coal and oil.

Gases that evaporate from liquid or solid carbon-based compounds are known as condensibles.

Hazardous air pollutants are chemical emissions that pose a health risk of serious illness such as cancer or birth defects with small inhalation exposures.

The maximum achievable control technology is a performance standard used by the Environmental Protection Agency to control emissions of hazardous air pollutants.

Acid rain is caused primarily by two air pollutants,carbon dioxide and sulfur dioxide.

Indoor air in developed nations contains a mixture of pollutants including combustion by-products from cooking such as carbon monoxide and asbestos.

Radon is an inert,colorless,and odorless gas found in soil and rock formations.

Ozone-depleting gases such as chlorofluorocarbons are tiny,tough molecules that defy natural breakdown processes.

The United States is not a party to the Kyoto Protocol.

The Clean Water Act is effective in eliminating polluted factory outflows.

The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 gave EPA the authority to manage hazardous waste from the moment it is created to the moment it is finally destroyed.

The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act ensures that the thousands of abandoned toxic waste sites around the United States are cleaned up.

The estimated burden of disease caused by pollution is calculated as the percentage of deaths and: A) average years of life lost. B) expected years of life lost. C) disability-adjusted life years. D) quality-adjusted life years.

The slender margin atop the earth's surface that supports life is called the: A) hydrosphere. B) ionosphere. C) lithosphere. D) biosphere.

A(n)_____ is an animated,interactive realm of plants,animals,and microorganisms inhabiting an area of the nonliving environment. A) niche B) ecosystem C) biotope D) ionosphere

Which of the following is NOT an example of an ecosystem service? A) A coral reef that stabilizes seabeds. B) Pollination of crops. C) A land that has stopped producing water. D) Pest control by birds.

Nonpolluting economic growth that improves the standard of living of people without depleting the net resources of the earth is called: A) green development. B) sustainable development. C) environmental planning. D) community building.

The environmental Kuznets curve is a(n)_____ curve. A) S-shaped B) J-shaped C) inverted J-shaped D) inverted U-shaped

Which of the following is an important implication of the environmental Kuznets curve? A) Society will not focus much on education. B) Economic inequality decreases over time while a country is developing. C) More economic growth will not necessarily lead to steadily increasing levels of pollution. D) Environmental quality in growing economies will follow a path of long-term deterioration.

The theory that humans are separate from nature because they have the power of reason and,unlike plants and animals,have souls is known as the theory of: A) dualism. B) atomism. C) emergentism. D) humanism.

The belief that history is a narrative of improvement in which humanity moves from lower to higher levels of perfection is known as: A) capitalism. B) speciesism. C) progress. D) sustainable development.

The theory of _____ valued nature primarily as a commodity to be used in wealth-creating activity that increased the vigor,welfare,and comfort of society. A) capitalism B) socialism C) altruism D) utilitarianism

Which of the following is an economic system in which private individuals and corporations own the means of production and,motivated by the desire for profit;compete in free markets under conditions of limited restraint by government? A) Utilitarianism B) Capitalism C) Socialism D) Fascism

_____ is the ethical philosophy of the greatest good for the greatest number. A) Utilitarianism B) Capitalism C) Deep ecology D) Moral responsibility

According to this theory,humans are part of an ethical community that includes not only other human beings but all elements of the natural environment. A) Existentialism B) Deep ecology C) Land ethic D) Agrarianism

The theory of land ethic: A) holds that human domination of nature should cease. B) indicates bias toward the members of one's own species and against those of members of other species. C) means distributing land from the rich to the poor. D) implies an ethical duty to nature as well as humanity.

The theory that rejects human domination of nature and holds that humans have only equal rights with other species,not superior rights,is the theory of: A) agrarianism. B) existentialism. C) deep ecology. D) land ethic.

According to the theory of deep ecology: A) people feel depressed when their home environment changes. B) human interference with nature is now excessive and must be drastically reduced. C) human beings have duties not only towards fellow humans but also towards nature. D) rural life is superior to city life.

Bias by humans toward members of their own class and prejudice against members of other kind is known as: A) speciesism. B) objectivism. C) utilitarianism. D) supremacism.

The Environmental Protection Agency: A) is a legislative branch regulatory agency. B) was created in 1990 to consolidate environmental programs scattered throughout the federal government. C) writes detailed,specific rules needed to make environmental laws work. D) cannot enforce rules directly on corporations.

The primary air quality statute in the United States is the: A) Air (Prevention and control of Pollution)Act. B) Air Quality Act. C) National Environmental Policy Act. D) Clean Air Act.

The _____ is required to set national standards for air pollutants at levels that protect public health and the environment. A) Environmental Protection Agency B) Council on Environmental Quality C) U.S.Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board D) U.S.Green Building Council

_____ refer to six natural substances that in large quantities cause the degradation of air quality. A) Point source effluents B) Greenhouse gases C) Criteria pollutants D) Hazardous air pollutants

_____ is formed in the air by chemical reactions between nitrogen dioxide and volatile organic compounds. A) Methane B) Ozone C) Benzene D) Ammonia

Gases that evaporate from liquid or solid carbon-based compounds and,which,in sunlight react with other pollutants to form urban smog are known as: A) particulate matters. B) gas flares. C) greenhouse gases. D) volatile organic compounds.

Which of the following,released by industrial activity and combustion,is composed of small fragments suspended in the air? A) Methane B) Particulate matter C) Volatile organic compounds D) Toluene

Small particles formed in the atmosphere by photochemical reactions of gases found in urban smog are known as: A) inorganic compounds. B) precipitants. C) condensibles. D) volatile organic compounds.

Chemical emissions that pose a health risk of serious illness such as cancer with even small inhalation exposures are known as: A) criteria pollutants. B) hazardous air pollutants. C) volatile organic compounds. D) condensibles.

Maximum achievable control technology is a performance standard used by the Environmental Protection Agency to control: A) emissions of hazardous air pollutants. B) emissions of criteria pollutants. C) water pollutants. D) land pollutants.

Acid rain is caused primarily by two air borne pollutants: A) particulates and lead. B) volatile organic compounds and carbon monoxide. C) sulfur dioxide and oxides of nitrogen. D) radon and ozone.

One of the dangerous indoor air pollutants is ____,an inert,colorless,odorless,radioactive gas found in soil and rock formations. A) ozone B) chlorofluorocarbon C) methane D) radon

Emissions of manufactured gases containing chlorine and bromine,when released into the ____,persist and eventually rise into the ____,they are converted by chemical reactions into more reactive gases that destroy ozone. A) lower atmosphere;stratosphere B) higher atmosphere;troposphere C) lower atmosphere;mesosphere D) higher atmosphere;mesosphere

Ozone,when present in this major layer of the Earth's atmosphere,screens out ultraviolet energy harmful to living tissue. A) Mesosphere B) Stratosphere C) Troposphere D) Thermosphere

Which of the following are used as refrigerants,aerosol propellants,foams,and solvents? A) Herbicides B) Placebos C) Carbon monoxides D) Chlorofluorocarbons

The Montreal Protocol set timetables to phase out worldwide: A) elimination of leaded gasoline. B) use of 96 ozone-depleting chemicals. C) emission of greenhouse gases. D) build-up of radon.

Atmospheric gases that absorb energy radiated from the earth,decreasing its release into space are known as: A) condensibles. B) organic gases. C) greenhouse gases. D) effluents.

Which of the following is the predominant greenhouse gas,which makes up about 85 percent of greenhouse gas emissions? A) Chlorofluorocarbons B) Nitrous oxide C) Carbon dioxide D) Methane

The _____ which went into effect in 2005 requires industrial nations to cut emissions of heat-trapping gases an average of 5 percent below 1990 levels by 2012. A) Montreal Protocol B) Aarhus Convention C) Barcelona Convention D) Kyoto Protocol

The basic statute for fighting water pollution in the United States is the: A) Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972. B) Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution)Act of 1974. C) Water Pollution Program Improvement Act. D) Safe Drinking Water Act.

A treated or untreated wastewater discharge from an industrial facility is known as a(n): A) spill. B) surface runoff. C) effluent. D) condensible.

A discrete source of discharge such as a factory,mine,ship,or pipeline is known as a(n): A) area source. B) line source. C) volume source. D) point source.

The National Pollution Discharge Elimination System is the permit system used to regulate: A) emission of criteria pollutants. B) emission of hazardous air pollutants. C) industrial effluents from point sources. D) industrial effluents from nonpoint sources.

A _____ effluent is a runoff that enters surface waters from diffuse sources. A) nonpoint B) volume C) line D) area

Which Act gave the Environmental Protection Agency the authority to manage hazardous waste from "from cradle to grave"? A) The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act B) The Toxic Substances Control Act C) The Comprehensive Environmental Response,Compensation,and Liability Act D) The Federal Water Pollution Control Act

The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act: A) is an easy statute to administer and with which to comply. B) demands that regulators keep track of all hazardous waste produced anywhere in the country. C) allows balancing costs against benefits. D) ensures that the thousands of abandoned toxic waste sites around the United States are cleaned up.

Which Act was passed to take care of the thousands of abandoned toxic waste sites around the country? A) The Toxic Substances Control Act B) The Medical Waste Tracking Act C) The Comprehensive Environmental Response,Compensation,and Liability Act D) The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act

Superfund is the common name for the: A) Medical Waste Tracking Act. B) Comprehensive Environmental Response,Compensation,and Liability Act. C) Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. D) Toxic Substances Control Act.

Define pollution.

Explain the term "disability adjusted life year" (DALY).

What is an ecosystem?

Define sustainable development.

Explain the theory of dualism.

What do you understand by the term "ecosystem services"? Give an example of an ecosystem service.

Explain the environmental Kuznets curve.Discuss the factors that explain it.What are the factors that underlie pollution reductions?

Discuss the theory of dualism.

What is speciesism? How does it justify the expansion of rights to nonhuman entities?

What is the importance of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)?

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)has set standards to curb emissions of criteria pollutants.What are they?

How is indoor air pollution caused?

Discuss greenhouse gases and their effects.What is the Kyoto Protocol?

Discuss some of the provisions of the Clean Water Act.

What has Congress done to curb land pollution?