AP Environmental Science Exam Checklist
Keyed to Environment: Science Behind the Stories, 3rd AP Edition by Withgott & Brennan
WB Ch 1: Introduction to Environmental Science
WB Ch 3: Environmental Policy
 State examples of renewable and non-renewable
natural resources
 Briefly describe the agricultural and industrial
revolutions
 Describe the issue that concerned Thomas Malthus
and later Paul & Anne Erlich and Garrett Hardin
 Summarize Hardin's "Tragedy of the Commons"
 Describe the concept of "ecological footprint"
 Outline what is traditionally described as the "scientific
method"
 Describe "sustainable development" and the "triple
bottom line"
 Describe public policy and environmental policy
 Describe the "free rider predicament" and explain why
it suggests a need for public policy
 Describe how external costs suggest a need for
environmental policy
 Describe the incidents on the Cuyahoga River near
Cleveland, Ohio
 Describe the role of the Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA)
 Summarize the following environmental acts:
o National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)
o Clean Air Act
o Wilderness Act
o Endangered Species Act
o Safe Drinking Water Act
o Toxic Substances Control Act
o Clean Water Act
o Superfund
 Describe the "command and control" approach to
environmental policy
 Summarize the following international environmental
agreements:
o Kyoto Protocol
o Montreal Protocol
o CITES
o International Convention for the Regulation of
Whaling
o Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution
by Dumping of Wastes
 Define: environmental impact statement (EIS),
executive branch, green tax, judicial branch, legislative
branch, lobbying, regulations, subsidy
WB Ch 2: Environmental Ethics & Economics
 Summarize the central case around the construction of
a uranium mine on aboriginal land in Australia
 Compare and contrast the anthropocentric, biocentric
and ecocentric worldviews (fig 2.4)
 Describe some of the contributions of John Muir and
Aldo Leopold to the environmental movement (fig 2.5,
2.7)
 Compare and contrast the conservation ethic and the
preservation ethic
 Describe the concept of "environmental justice" and
give an example
 State some of the economic views put forward by
Adam Smith
 Describe "cost-benefit analysis" - include the idea of
"externalities" (fig 2.13)
 Describe several examples of ecosystem services (table
2.2)
 Discuss the "growth paradigm"
 Contrast GDP and GPI as measures of economic
progress (fig 2.16)
 Describe the following non-market values: use value,
aesthetic value, cultural value, scientific value,
educational value, existence value (table 2.3, fig 2.17)
 Define: Anthropocentrism, biocentrism, conservation
ethic, cost-benefit analysis, culture, deep ecology,
ecocentrism, ecolabeling, economics, ecosystem
services, environmental ethics, external cost, goods,
Gross Domestic Product (GDP), nonmarket values,
preservation ethic, relativists, services, subsistence
economy, transcendentalism, universalists, worldview
WB Ch 4: From Chemistry to Energy to Life
 Give an overview of the Exxon Valdez oil spill
 State the top two elements in earth's crust, the oceans
and the atmosphere
 Give pros & cons for bioremediation for clean-up
 Define/apply "chemistry basics"
 Describe acidity/basicity in terms of H+/OH- and pH
 Contrast kinetic & potential energy
 State the first & second laws of thermodynamics
 Write the equations for photosynthesis & respiration
 Give examples of geothermal energy
 Describe three theories for the origin of life on earth
 Define: bioremediation, primary producer (autotroph),
photosynthesis, cellular respiration, heterotroph,
geothermal energy, chemosynthesis
 Give examples of density-dependent and densityindependent limiting factors
 Give characteristics and examples of K-selected and rselected species (table 5.4)
 Define: evolution, natural selection, adaptive trait
(adaptation), mutation, artificial selection, biodiversity,
species, population, speciation, endemic species,
biosphere, community, ecosystem, population ecology,
community ecology, habitat, niche, specialists,
generalists, population distribution/dispersion, age
structure, crude birth rate, crude death rate,
survivorship curve, growth rate, exponential growth,
logistic growth, limiting factors, carrying capacity,
biotic potential, K-selected species, r-selected species,
ecotourism
WB Ch 6: Species Interactions & Community Ecology
WB Ch 5: Evolution, Biodiversity & Pop'n Ecology
 Describe the central case about the Golden Toads of
Monteverde's cloud forest
 Describe how natural selection acts as the mechanism
for biological evolution (see table 5.1)
 Describe the two major mechanisms that contribute to
variation within the DNA of organisms
 Contrast directional, stabilizing and disruptive selection
(use graphs & written descriptions, fig 5.2)
 Give examples of artificial selection (fig 5.4)
 Contrast and give examples of allopatric and sympatric
speciation (see table 5.2, fig 5.5)
 Describe the importance of extinction in biodiversity
 Explain why endemic species are especially vulnerable
to extinction - give examples.
 Describe "background extinction rate" and contrast it
with "mass extinction events"
 Describe the K-T mass extinction event, the last of 5
major mass extinctions
 List the hierarchy of levels of organization in ecology
(fig 5.10)
 Contrast an organism's "habitat" with its "niche"
 Contrast generalists with specialists - give examples
 List and describe the 5 major characteristics of
populations (size, density etc ...). Give examples of the
three different types of population dispersion
(distributions ... fig 5.12)
 Interpret an age structure pyramid (fig 5.13)
 Contrast and give examples of types I, II and III
survivorship curves (fig 5.14)
 Contrast exponential (J-shaped) with logistic (s-shaped)
population curves (carrying capacity, overshoot, dieoff) (fig 5.15, 5.16, 5.17)
 Describe the central case about Zebra Mussels as an
invasive species within the Great Lakes
 Define and give examples of the 6 major types of
species interactions (mutualism, commensalism, etc ...
table 6.1)
 Explain the difference between a fundamental niche
and a realized niche (fig 6.2)
 Describe and give an example of resource partitioning
(fig 6.3)
 Describe methods of avoiding predation (fig 6.6) and
herbivory.
 Describe how coevolution can take place with
predators and prey
 Interpret pyramids of energy (or numbers/biomass)
that depict trophic levels. Why does eating at lower
trophic levels decrease one's ecological footprint?
Describe energy loss as you move up trophic levels
within the pyramid. (Fig 6.11)
 Provide examples of keystone species, explaining their
disproportionate impact on their ecosystem (fig 6.13
... science behind story, p 156-157)
 Interpret or sketch simplified food webs (fig 6.10,
6.12)
 Contrast primary and secondary succession - give
examples of each. Include the terms "pioneer species"
and "climax community". (fig 6.14, 6.15
 Describe characteristics of invasive species - what are
methods of their introduction to ecosystems? What
typically makes them invasive? What problems arise?
How can they be controlled? Provide several
examples. (fig 6.16)
 List 10 major biomes and roughly locate them on a
world map. Given a climate graph showing
precipitation and temperatures annually, match it to a
major biome.
 Describe how changes in altitude create patterns in
vegetation/climate similar to changes in latitude
 Define: phytoplankton, zooplankton, symbiosis,
mutualism, commensalism, predation, parasitism,
herbivory, neutralism, amensalism, competition,
resource partitioning, trophic level, producer,
primary/secondary/tertiary consumers, herbivore,
carnivore, omnivore, detritivore, decomposer,
keystone species, primary succession, secondary
succession, pioneer species, climax community,
invasive (exotic) species, biome
WB Ch. 7: Environmental Systems & Ecosystem Ecology
 Describe the central case describing the "dead zone" at
the mouth of the Mississippi in the Gulf of Mexico.
Include over-use of fertilizers, eutrophication, hypoxia,
algae blooms, plankton, bacteria, decomposition (fig
7.3, 7.4, 7.5)
 Give examples of positive and negative feedback loops
in environmental science (fig 7.1)
 Describe emergent properties of a system (fig 7.2)
 Describe the characteristics of a eutrophic freshwater
system and its opposite, an oligotrophic system
 Define "primary productivity" and clearly distinguish
between GPP and NPP. Identify ecosystems that have
very HIGH and relatively LOW NPP.
 Describe each of the major biogeochemical cycles
(with appropriate vocabulary & chemistry) ... including
major reservoirs/sinks and fluxes. Include
anthropogenic influences where appropriate. Carbon
Cycle, Nitrogen Cycle, Water (Hydrologic) Cycle,
Phosphorus Cycle, Sulfur Cycle
 Explain how CO2 dissolved in water leads to
acidification and how this might impact aquatic
ecosystems
 Identify several plants that enrich soil with nitrogen
through symbiosis with nitrogen-fixing bacteria in their
roots
 List several ways in which humans have greatly
impacted the global nitrogen cycle
 List several recommendations that would help reduce
the risks of eutrophication and algae blooms
 State the % of water on earth that is freshwater ... and
the % that is freshwater in rivers/lakes
 Discuss the significance of groundwater resources
(include appropriate vocabulary) and the dangers of
depleting them for irrigation and industrial uses
 Describe generally the "rock cycle"
 Describe generally the theory of "Plate Tectonics"
including concepts of plate boundaries, the "ring of
fire"
 Define: hypoxia, eutrophication, negative feedback,
positive feedback, homeostasis, emergent properties,
lithosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere,
ecosystem, primary productivity (GPP and NPP),
macronutrients/micronutrients, ecotone, conservation
biology, GIS, biogeochemical cycles, anthropogenic,
nitrification, denitrification, assimilation,
ammonification, nitrogen fixation, Haber-Bosch
process, infiltration, transpiration, aquifer, water table,
groundwater, rock cycle, magma, lava, igneous rock,
sedimentary rock, weathering, erosion, tectonic plate,
divergent boundary, convergent boundary, subduction,
transform boundary, Pangaea
WB Ch 8: Human Population
 Summarize and give pro's and con's for China's onechild policy
 Use the "Rule of 70" to calculate doubling time given a
population's growth rate (or vice versa)
 Describe those areas of the world with the highest
population growth rates (fig 8.3)
 Describe some of the causes & consequences of
human population growth (fig 8.6)
 List the top 3 countries by population
 State the current world population and give estimates
for population growth by 2050
 Define "replacement level fertility"
 Describe Malthus's concern about human population
growth (taken up by Erlich in the 1970's)
 Describe the IPATS model for the impact population
growth has on the environment
 Interpret Age Structure Pyramids for developing and
developed countries - relate the shape of the pyramid
to population growth (fig 8.10, 8.11, 8.12)
 Describe and explain the characteristics of the four
stages of the demographic transition (fig 8.15)
 Describe the importance of raising the status of
women to dealing with population growth rates
 Describe what is meant by "family planning" programs
 Besides family planning programs, discuss several ways
that government policy can play in influencing
population growth
 Define: age structure pyramid, birth control pill,
contraceptives, crude birth rate, crude death rate,
demographic transition, demography, doubling time,
emigration, HIV/AIDS, immigration, infant mortality,
IUD, life expectancy, natural rate of population change,
population density, replacement fertility, rule of 70,
sterilization (male & female), total fertility rate (TFR)
WB Ch 9: Soil & Agriculture
 Describe "no-till" agriculture and its advantages
(central case & table 9.2
 Describe top 3 reasons for soil degradation (fig 9.2)
 Compare subsistence agriculture, intensive traditional
agriculture and industrialized agriculture
 Describe the characteristics of the "green revolution"
 Describe physical, chemical & biological weathering
parent material in soil formation (fig 9.6)
 List the 5 factors in soil formation (table 9.1)
 Describe the horizons in a typical soil profile (fig 9.7)
 Describe the significance for agriculture of soil color,
texture, structure & pH
 Use a soil texture triangle to state classify soil (fig 9.8)
 Contrast sand silt and clay in terms of particle size,
permeability and porosity
 Describe several types of soil erosion (fig 9.10)
 Summarize the "dust bowl" in the early 1930's (fig
9.12)
 Describe 6 methods of reducing soil erosion (fig 9.14)
 Describe different methods of irrigation and compare
them in terms of water use (fig 9.18)
 Discuss pro's and con's to the use of chemical and
organic fertilizers. (fig 9.19, 9.20, 9.21)
 Describe the impacts of overgrazing on soils and
methods of prevention. (fig 9.22)
 Describe how clear-cutting practices in forestry can
affect soil erosion (fig 9.24)
 Define: arable land, bedrock, clay, contour farming,
crop rotation, cropland, desertification, Dust Bowl,
erosion, green revolution, gully erosion, horizon,
inorganic fertilizer, intercropping, irrigation, leaching,
loam, monoculture, no-till farming, organic fertilizer,
overgrazing, parent material, rangeland, reduced-till
farming, Rill erosion, salinization, sheet erosion,
shelterbelt, silt, soil, soil profile, soil texture triangle,
splash erosion, terracing, topsoil, waterlogging,
weathering
WB Ch 10: Agriculture, Biotechnology & Food Future
 Describe and give consequences of undernourishment
and malnourishment
 Describe the contributions of Norman Borlaug and his
work with Mexican farmers
 Describe the impact of the green revolution on
agricultural output in India
 Describe "high input" agriculture
 Describe the pro's and con's to farming with
monocultures
 Describe the role of natural selection in evolution of
pesticide resistance (fig 10.7)
 Provide examples of biological control of pests; discuss
potential down-sides to this method of pest control
 Describe Integrated Pest Management (IPM)
 Describe the tension with pesticide use and the
importance of pollinators
 Describe the benefits of the following GMO's: Golden
Rice, Bt crops, Starlink corn, Roundup Ready crops,
terminator seeds (fig 10.13)
 Describe some controversies over the use of GMO's
 Describe the precautionary principle
 Discuss the importance of preserving crop diversity
and the role of seed banks in doing so
 Discuss the pro's and con's to the use of feedlots
(CAFO's)
 Describe how a meat diet has a larger environmental
footprint than a vegetarian diet. Contrast beef with
pork and poultry. (fig 10.19, 10.20)
 Describe the pro's and con's to aquaculture
 Describe the characteristics of sustainable farming
 Describe the characteristics of organic farming (fig
10.3)
 Define: Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), biological control,
biotechnology, food security, gene banks, genetically
modified organisms (GMOs), green revolution,
malnutrition, organic agriculture, overnutrition, pest,
pesticides, pollination, precautionary principle, seed
banks, sustainable agriculture, terminator gene,
transgenes, undernourished, weed
WB Ch 11: Biodiversity & Conservation Biology
 Describe the concept of genetic diversity - name some
species with low genetic diversity and describe the
potential problems they face
 List the 5 major causes of biodiversity loss and several
consequences (pp 304 - 310 & fig 11.16)
 Provide examples of habitat loss/alteration and
connect them to loss of biodiversity
 Provide examples of invasive species and connect
them to loss of biodiversity (fig 11.13)
 Provide examples of pollution linked to biodiversity
loss
 Provide examples of overharvesting
 Describe how climate change may impact biodiversity
 Give several examples of "ecosystem services"
provided by biodiversity
 Give two examples of how ecosystem resilience is
preserved by preserving biodiversity (or harmed by
loss of biodiversity)
 Make the connection between preserving biodiversity
and preserving food security (fig 11.17)
 Explain how preserving biodiversity provides drugs &
medicines (fig 11.18)
 Describe the benefits of ecotourism
 Describe the role of conservation biologists
 Use E.O. Wilson's equilibrium theory of island
biogeography to look at the effects of distance and
island size on biodiversity. Extend the theory to
"islands" of ecosystems on land and generalize a
species-area relationship. (fig 11.21, 11.22, 11.23)
 Describe "habitat fragmentation" and its impact on
biodiversity
 Give examples of successful captive breeding programs
 Give examples of "umbrella species"
 Describe some of the aspects of CITES
 Give examples of biodiversity hotspots (fig 11.26)
 Define: background rate of extinction, biodiversity
hotspots, biophilia, ecosystem services, endemic
species, extirpation, habitat fragmentation, latitudinal
gradient, mass extinctions, minimum viable
population, Red List, species richness
WB Ch 12: Resource Mgmt, Forestry, Land Use ...
 List several examples of natural resources that require
management for sustainable use
 Describe "ecosystem-based management" philosophy
 Describe some of the negative consequences of
deforestation. What two continents are experiencing
the greatest deforestation today?
 Compare the four systems of harvesting trees: clearcut, seed-tree, shelterwood and selection
 List some uses for forest designated as "multiple use"
 Describe the controversy over the US Forestry Service's
policy of suppressing forest fires
 Explain and give examples of "sustainable forestry
certification"
 Discuss the impact of agriculture on natural wetlands
 Describe the role of the US Bureau of Land
Management
 Contrast national parks/reserves with "wilderness
areas"
 Define: biosphere reserves, clear-cutting, controlled
burns, corridors, deforestation, even-aged, forestry,
land trusts, maximum stainable yield, multiple use,
prescribed burns, resource management, salvage
logging, second-growth, uneven-aged, wilderness
areas, wise-use movement
WB Ch 13: Urbanization & Creating Livable Cities
 Describe the worldwide trend in urbanization
 Explain some negative consequences of urban sprawl;
provide causes and solutions to the problem
 Compare the roles of city planners and regional
planners
 Explain and give examples of "zoning" (fig 13.7)
 List and give a rational for 5 principles of "smart
growth" (table 13.2)
 Explain why transportation issues are critical to cities;
give examples of solutions to reduce transportation
problems in cities (fig 13.10)
 Give reasons for the inclusion of parks and open spaces
in cities
 Give two positive and two negative environmental
impacts of city living
 Define: smart growth, sprawl, suburbs, urban ecology,
urban growth boundary (UGB)
WB Ch 14: Environmental Health & Toxicology
 Describe the dangers of "endocrine disruptors"
 Provide examples of physical hazards
 Provide examples of chemical hazards and describe
some of their effects on health (e.g. Lead poisoning,
radon gas, asbestos etc ...)
 Provide examples of cultural hazards
 List the top three causes of death worldwide (fig 14.2)
 List several infectious diseases that are leading causes
of death worldwide - for each disease, describe its
mode of transmission and some major symptoms
 Provide examples of diseases that are transmitted by
mosquitoes or other insect bites
 Describe the life cycle of plasmodium parasite and its
role in malaria transmission; discuss methods of
combating malaria
 Describe the role played by Rachel Carson through her
book "Silent Spring" in raising awareness of pesticide
dangers
 Provide examples of major classes of toxicants
(carcinogens, mutagens, teratogens etc ...)
 Describe the related but distinct concepts of
bioaccumulation and biomagnification. Provide an
example. (fig 14.13)
 Interpret a linear "dose-response curve" ... including
LD50 and "threshold doses". Describe how endocrine
disruptors can have different shaped dose-response
curves and the significance of this (fig 14.14)
 Contrast "risk assessment" and "risk management"
 Contrast the "innocent until proven guilty" and
"precautionary principle" approaches to risk
management (fig 14.17)
 Define: acute exposure, allergens, bioaccumulation,
biological hazards, biomagnifications, breakdown
products, carcinogens, chemical hazards, chronic
exposure, cultural hazards, dose-response curve,
endocrine disruptors, epidemiological studies,
LC50/LD50, mutagens, neurotoxins, physical hazards,
POP's, synergistic effects, teratogens, threshold dose,
toxicant, toxicology, vector
WB Ch 15: Freshwater Resources
 Summarize the importance of and some of the major
challenges facing the Colorado River system (central
case, fig 15.12, 15.13)
 State the % of water on earth that is "fresh water" (fig
15.1)
 Give some reasons for preserving and restoring
"wetlands" - give different examples of wetlands
 Contrast eutrophic and oligotrophic lakes
 Describe the challenges facing the Ogallala Aquifer in
the central United States
 Describe the challenge of water availability and world
population distribution (fig 15.7)
 Contrast the major uses of water in the US and in India
(fig 15.9)
 Discuss several benefits and costs to dams (table 15.1)
 Describe the fate of the Aral sea in central Asia (fig
15.14)
 Describe several major causes of depletion of fresh
water resources (fig 15.15, 15.16)
 Describe solutions to the problem of depletion of fresh
water resources
 Describe 5 major types of pollution in fresh water
systems (fig 15.20 & 15.21)
 Contrast point-source and non-point-source pollution
 Describe what happens during primary & secondary
treatment of wastewater. State possible fates of the
"biosolids/sludge" at the end of treatment (fig 15.24)
 Define: aquifers, artesian aquifers, benthic zone,
confined aquifer, consumptive use, desalination,
eutrophic conditions, floodplain, freshwater,
greywater, limnetic zone, littoral zone,
nonconsumptive use, nonpoint source pollution,
oligotrophic conditions, point source pollution,
profundal zone, reverse osmosis, sediment pollution,
septic systems, sinkholes, unconfined aquifer,
wetlands, wastewater