Environmental Science Final Exam

Front 1

Compare instrumental value and intrinsic value as they relate to determining the worth of natural species.

Back 1

Instumental value is a species or individual organism has this if its' existence or use benefits some other entity. Intrinsic value is value for its own sake, that is it does not have to be useful for us to possess value.

Front 2

How does the Endangered Species Act preserve threatened and endangered species in the US? What are the shortcoming of, and controversies surrounding the act? Cite specific examples of each?

Back 2

ESA preserves threatened and endangered species in the US by having the law specify substantial fines on protecing the endangered species. Political battles, budget constraints and opposition of the act are some shortcomings.

Front 3

What is biodiversity? What are the best current estimate of its extent?

Back 3

Biodiversity is the variety of life on earath. The best current estimate of its extent is the number of species - this is unknown.

Front 4

How do changes in habitat affect biodiversity? Give examples.

Back 4

Changes in habitat affect biodiversity because the species must adapt to the surrounding environment and there may or may not be predators that are native to that region. This causes an imbalance in that ecosystem (Kudzu)

Front 5

What is an invasive species? Give examples of several and their impact on native species.

Back 5

Invasive species are species not native to that ecosystem. Example: Japanese beetles do not belong in Georgia because they can eat all of our really great tasting peanuts and they do not have birds that will eat them because "our" birds do not like them. Hence, they overpopulate the area, and create an infestation.

Invasive species are organisms that successfully establish, and then thrive, in new environments. An invasive species can be a micro-organism that causes disease; a plant or animal that competes with a native species for resources (like food or space); a predator of native species; and/or an organism that alters the way an ecosystem works.

Front 6

Discuss the idea that ecosystems may collapse if they lose some of their species.

Back 6

Ecosystems depend on a food chain in order to work efficiently. If one species of the food chain would become unavailable - there would be a disruption in the food chain.

Front 7

What is CITES, and what are it limitations? Give three requirements of the Convention on Biological Diversity.

Back 7

CITES is not specifically a device to protect rare species. Instead it is an international agreement signed by 18 nations that focus on trade and wildlife and wildlife parts. Three requirements of the Convention on Biological Diversity state
1. Stepping up the war against invasive species
2. Guidelines for giving international companies and organizations access to genetic resources in return for a fair share of any profits and benefits
3. Creating ways to stem the tide of deforestation and thereby foster sustainable forest management
4. Formulating a strategic plan to coordinate activities under the convention through 2010

Front 8

Compare the concept of ecosystem capital with that of natural resources. What do the two reveal about values?

Back 8

Ecosystem capital is the value attached to the ecosystem. Natural resources are the material itself - not including their monetary value. The two reveal their importance by stating how much they are needed in society. Example: Lumber is a natural resource - the ecosystem capital is the amount attached to the area where the lumber is.

Front 9

Compare and contrast the terms conservation and preservation.

Back 9

Conservation is the management of resources in such a way as to assure that it will continue to provide maximum benefit to humans over the long run. Preservation is maintaining a certain resource or species so that it does not become extinct or no longer in existence.

Front 10

What does maximum sustainable yield mean? What factors compicate its application?

Back 10

The highest possible rate of use that the system can match with its' own rate of replacement or maintenance. The factors that complicate its application are: optimal population and precautionary principle are two factos that complicate its application

Front 11

What is the tragedy of the commons? Give an example of a common pool resource and how it can be mistreated. How can such resources be protected?

Back 11

Exploitation of such common pool resources presents some serious problems and can lead to the eventual ruin of the resource.

Front 12

When are restoration efforts needed? Describe efforts under way to restore the Everglades.

Back 12

Restoration efforts are needed when there is damage to specific lands and waters that the normal ecosystem integrity, resilience and productivity cannot recover from. The efforts under way to restore the Everglads are the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration plan (it will tak about 36 years) p. 297

Front 13

What is deforestation, and what factors are primarily responsible for deforestation of the tropics? Describe some encouraging trends in forest management in developing countries.

Back 13

Deforestation is the removal of forest and replacement by another land use. Factors that are primarily responsible for deforestation fo the tropics could include: droughts, climate change, and industry. Some encouraging trends in forest management in developing countries are: sustainable forestry, responsible practices, forest health and productivity and protecting special sites.

Front 14

What two countries are pressuring the IWC to reopen commercial whaling, and what is their rationale for resuming the killing?

Back 14

Japan and Norway are two countreis that are pressuring the IWC to reopen commercial whaling. Their rationale for resuming whaling is the focus on the minke whale - stating that they are able to absorb a sustainable population.

Front 15

How are coral reefs and mangroves being threatened, and how is this destruction linked to other environmental problems?

Back 15

Coral reefs and mangroves are being threatened because of three things: bleaching, exploitation and the overfishing of tropical fish. Their destruction affects the ecosystem in the ocean and makes the water less diverse.

Front 16

Describe the progression of the managment of tour national forests during the last half century. What are two current issues, and how are they being resolved?

Back 16

During the last half century, the national forests have had an increase in the number fo trees and have eliminated the problem of deforestation in the United States. They are working very diligently on preventing fires in addition to making them roadless.

Front 17

How do land trusts work, and what roles do they play in preserving natural lands?

Back 17

Land trusts are outright gifts of land or easements (or arrangements) in which the landowner gives up development rights into the future, but retains ownership of the parcel. The role that they play in preserving natural lands is that they are a vital link in the preservation of ecosystem.

Front 18

Define morbitidy, mortality and epidemiology.

Back 18

Morbidity is the incidence of diseasein a population and is commonly used to trace the presence of a particular type of illness, such as influenze or diarrheal disease. Mortality is the incidence of death in a population. Epidemiology is the study of the presence, districution and control of disease in populations.

Front 19

What are the four categories of human environmental hazards. Give examples of each.

Back 19

Four categories of human environmental hazards are: cultural (eat too much, drive too fast, hang glide, sun bathe) biological (pathogenic bacteria and viruses, black plague, small pox) physical hazards (natural disasters: hurricanes, floods, forest fires, earthquakes) chemical hazards (cleaning agents, pesticides, fuels, paints, mediciines)

Front 20

What is the significance of malaria worldwide, and what are some recent developments in the battle against this disease?

Back 20

Malaria kills about a million people a year. Some recent developments of this disease is that they are creating vaccines and they are also proving mosquito nets to poor people and are educating people about how to not get malaria.

Front 21

What concerns about risks and hazards tend to generate public outrage?

Back 21

The concerns are: lack of familiarity with a technology, extent to which the risk is voluntary, public impression of hazards, overselling of safety, morality, control and fairness (430)

Front 22

Define pollution, pollutant, nonbiodegradable, point source and nonpoint source of pollutants

Back 22

Pollution: thr presence of a substance in the environment that, because of its chemical compostion or quantity, prevents the functioning of natural processes and produced undesirable environmental and heatlh effects. Pollutant: any material that causes pollution, Point source: discharge of substances from factories, sewage systems, power plants underground coal mines and oil wells. Nonpoint source: poorly defined and scattered over broad areas: rainfall and snowmelt.

Front 23

Discuss each of the following categories of water pollutants and the problems they cause: pathogens, organic wastes, chemical pollutants, and sediments.

Back 23

Pathogens: excrement from humans and other species that may carry disease. Organic wastes: leaves, grass clippings, trash (they will enter bodies of water as a consequence of runoff) chemical pollutants: chemical substances in water such as lead, mercury, and nickel that may be in water (this could be runoff from a mine) sediments: erision from farmlands, deforested slopes, and overgrazed rangelands - the sand, silt and clay have direct and extreme physical impacts on streams and rivers.

Front 24

Describe and compare submerged aquatic vegetation and phytoplankton. Where and how does each get nutrients and light?

Back 24

Submerged aquatic vegetation is vegetation that grows under water. Phytoplankton consists of numerous species of photosynthetic algae, protists and chlorophyll containing bacteria. SAV is under water and phytoplankton lives suspended int the water and is found wherever light and nutrients are available. SAV absorbs nutrients in the stem because it is rooted and phytoplankton absorbs nutrients in the water.

Front 25

Explain the difference between oligotrophic and eutrophic waters. Describe the sequential process of eutrophication.

Back 25

Oligotrophic water is a body of water in which light penetrates deeply; one in whihc the bottom is only visible beyond the immediate shoreline. Eutrophic is enriched with nutrients.
The sequential process of eutrophication starts with nutrient enrichment, proceeding to the growth and die off of phytoplankton, the accumulation of ditritus, the growth of bacteria, and finally,the depletion of dissolved oxygen and the suffocation of higher organisms.

Front 26

Distinguish between natural and cultrual eutrophication.

Back 26

Natural eutrophication is a normal process when water becomes subject to gradual enrichment of nutrients. Cultural eutrophication is when nutrients come from swage water plants, poor farming, runoff and human activities.

Front 27

Give a brief history of how huans' handling of sewage wastes has changed as the risks and potention benefits have become better understood.

Back 27

Humans have developed sewage management and treatment and have also collected sewage and also remove pollutants from the sewage.

Front 28

Why is secondary treatment also called biological treatment? What is the principle involved? What are the two alternative methods used?

Back 28

Secondary treatent is also called biological treatment because it uses organisms - natural decomposers and detritus deefers. The pinciple involved is that an environment is created that enables these organisms to feed on the colloidal and dissolved orgainc material and break it down to carbon dioxide and water. Two alternative methods used are: a trickling filter system or an activated=sludge system.

Front 29

What are the principles involved in, and what is accomplished by the removal of bilogical nutrients from waste? Where do nitrogen and phosphate go in the process?

Back 29

When the nitrogen is removed from the waste, it is controlled so that it can reenter the atmosphere after a process called denitrificaiton. Nitrogen and phosphorus both go into zones and the environment in each zone is controlled in a manner that promotes the process.

Front 30

How may sewage from individual homes be handledi n the absence of municipal collection systems? What are some problems with these onsite systems?

Back 30

There are two ways that sewage can be collected outside the reach of a municipal system: septic tank and leaching fields. On site systems frequntly fail, resulting in unpleasant sewage backup into homes and pollution of groundwater and surface waters.

Front 31

What are the major problems with placing waste in landfills? How can these problems be managed?

Back 31

Air pollution and rats are major problems with placing waste in landfills. The problems can be managed buy having new landfills on high ground, floor is contoured so that water will drain into a tile leachate collection system, layer upon layer of refuuse that is in the shape of a pyramid.

Front 32

Explain the difficulties accompanying landfill siting and outsourcing. How can these processes be handled responsibly?

Back 32

You bring the landfill to a third world country who has enough problems of their own and they do not have the means to dispose of the waste in an intelligent manner. This can be handled responsibly by taking care of our own waste.

Front 33

Advantages and disadvantages of WTE combustion:

Back 33

WTE combustion advantages:
reduce weight of trash, toxic or hazardour substances are concentrated into trwo streams of ash, no changes are needed in collection procedure, all factilities are equipped with modern emission control technology.
Disadvantages: bad health, expensive to build, loaded with metals, need continuing supply.

Front 34

What is the evidence for increasing source reduction, and what are some examples of how it is accomplished?

Back 34

Increasing in consumer spending grew after the 1990's but MSW slowed down. Source reduction can be reduced by:
lightening the weight of many items, reducing paper waste, making durable goods reusable, lenghthening a products' life, composting yard waste.

Front 35

What are the environmental advantages of recycling?

Back 35

The environmental advantages of recycling are that:

- it saves energy and resources
-it decreases pollution

Front 36

Describe the materials that are recycled and how recycling is accomplished.

Back 36

The materials that are recycled and how recycling is accomplished:
- Paper and paperboard (can be made into pulp and reprocessed into recyled paper, cardboard, and other paper products, insulation, or shredded and recycled.
- most glass (crushed, remelted, made into new containers)
-some forms of plastic (melted and fabricated into carpet fiber
-metals (remelted and refabricated)
-yard waste (leaves, grass, and plant trimings) can be composted to produce a humus soil conditioner

Front 37

Discuss the attributes of successful recycling programs.

Back 37

1. Strong incentive to recycle, in the form of pay as you throw charges for general trash and no charge for recycled goods
2. Not optional (mandatory)
3. Residential recycling is curbside
4. Drop off sites are provided for bulky goods like sofas, appliances, materials and yard waste
5. Goals are ambitious, but achievable
6. Effort is amd to involve local industries
7. Municipality employs an experienced and committed recycling coordinator

Front 38

What laws has the federal government adopted to control solid-waste disposal?

Back 38

Solid Waste Disposal Act of 1965 gave jurisdication over solid waste to the bureau of Solid Waste Management
2. Resource Recovery Act of 1970 gave jurisdicaiton over waste management to the EPA
3. Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 saw a more reguolatory ("command and control" apporach to dealing with MSW
4. The Superfund Act of 198-0 addressed abandoned hazardous waste sites throughout the country
5. Hazardous and Sold Waste Amendments of 1984 gave EPA greater responsibility to set solid waste criteria

Front 39

Explain the significance of the El-Nino La Nina patterns for Earth's climate and weather.

Back 39

The sifnificance of El-Nino and La Nina patterns for Earth's climate and weather is that the unusually severe storms battering the Pacific coastline causing major coastal erosion and flooding rivers reveals that the major persistent weather patterns indicate a rise in global temperatures and an indication of climate change.

Front 40

What are the important characteristics of the troposhpere? Of the stratoshpere?

Back 40

The troposhere is the lowest layer of the atmosphere and the gases within this layer are responsible for moderating the flow of energy to Earth and are involved with the biogeochemical cycling of many elements and compounds. The stratosphere is above the tropopause and it is a layer within wchich temperature increases with alititude, up to about 40 miles above the surface of the Earth. The stratosphere abosorbs ozone, a high energy radiation emitted by the Sun

Front 41

How does solar radiation create our weather patterns?

Back 41

Solar radiation creates weather patterns by the sun relecting back to space (30%) but the remainder is absorbed by the oceans, land and atmosphere (70%) where it creates weather and fuels photosynthesis.

Front 42

What has been discovered about global climate trends in the past? What is the contemporary trend showing?

Back 42

Climates in the past have shown that our climate is far from constanct. Record of temperatures around the world show warming and cooling trends one from 1910 to 1945 and the latest dramatic increase from 1976 until the present.

Front 43

What is the conveyor system? How does it work? How does it connect with global warming?

Back 43

A conveyor system acts as a giant, complex conveyor belt, moving water massess from the surface to deep oceans and back again, according to the density of mass. Recent evidence indicates that the conveyor system has been interruped in the past, changing climate abruptly. (i.e. freshwater in the North Atlantic)

Front 44

Which of the greenhouse gases are the most significant contributors to global warming and the climate is changing?

Back 44

The greenhouse gases that are the most significant to global warming and climate change are: water vapor, methane, nitrous oxide, ozone, CFCs and CO2

Front 45

What evidence does the IPCC cite in support of its conclusion that the world is arming and the climate is changing?

Back 45

1. An increading body of observations gives a collective picture of a warming world and other changes in the climate system
2. Emissions of GHGs and Aerosols due to human activities continue to alter the atmpshere in ways that are expected to affect the climate
3. confidence in the ability of models to project future climate has increased
3. new and stronger evidence that most of the warming observed over the last 50 years is attributable to human activities
5. human influences will continue to change atmospheric composiiton througout the 21st century
6. global average temperature and sea level projected to rise under all IPCC scenarios

Front 46

What are the major IPCC projections for temperature and sea level for the 21st century?

Back 46

Temperature is projected to increasae by 1.4c to 5.8 celsius over the period 1990 to 2100. Sea level will rise up to 75 meters

Front 47

What mitigation steps could be taken to stabilize the greenhouse gas content of the atmpshere?

Back 47

1. precautionary principle: In order to protect the environment, we are taking measures to avoid a highly cost
2. polluter pays principle
3. equity principle (rich poeple will pay more to pollute)

Front 48

Trace the political history of the FCCC and the Kyoto Protocol. What is the current status of the protocol?

Back 48

FCCC: one of 5 documents signed by heads of state at the UNCED Earth Summit in Rio and was very disappointing - they all had an increase in greenhouse gases.
Kyoto Protocol was prompted by a coalition of island nationos to craft binding agreements on reducing greenhouse gas emmissions. They would select from a portfolio of options - carbon credit trading.

Front 49

Describe current U.S. climate change policy and compare it with that of other developed countries.

Back 49

Climate Change Science Program - Bush Administration (emmissions gases increase in the US 14% greenhouse decreased by 16%) no federal policy in line with that of the world - we are not doing everything we can to solve the problem because we just do not want to.

Front 50

How is the ozone shield formed? What causes its breakdown?

Back 50

Ozone shield is formed by the stratospheric ozone. It is formed by the splitting of O2 molecules.