Exam 1: Sustainability, Eco Footprints, Solid Waste, Hazardous Waste,
Compost
1. What is a geological timescale?
a. A length or distance that is ended by a major catastrophic event, such as a shifting of the
plates that make of the earth’s crust.
b. A to scale (proportional) representation of the history of earth, compiled from
geological and archeological evidence.
c. The first supercontinent, also known as Pangea which was the start of all 7 continents
and the origin of evolution.
d. The 12 plates that make up the earth and shrink or scale to the appropriate sizes to
create catastrophic events.
2. Humans have been on the earth for a very short time. How big of an impact have humans had
on the earth?
a. Humans have had a very big impact on the earth!
b. Humans have NOT impacted the earth at all.
c. Humans have only done good things for the earth.
d. Humans have had a very small impact on the earth.
e. Humans do NOT live on the earth or earth’s resources.
3. What are the 3 components of sustainability?
a. Humans, plants and animals
b. Industrial, Political, Analytical
c. Scientific, Investigative, Nature
d. Economic, Social, Environmental
4. What is Sustainability?
a. A way of life that does NOT meet our basic needs, so we are likely to die before the end
of our lifetime.
b. A way of life that meets our basic needs, but will NOT stop future generations from
meeting their needs.
c. A way of life that meets our basic needs and wants, because we are using up all the
resources now.
d. A way of life that requires us to spend a lot of money, so that we can have everything
that we want now.
e. A way of life that does NOT involve thinking of anyone but ourselves, so we can waste as
much as we want.
5. What is An Ecological Footprint?
a. A measure of how much a person consumes and produces waste and pollution,
expressed as a land area.
b. A measure of how many steps that you take on the earth whenever you are walking
from one place to another.
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c. A way of fixing the Environmental Degradation that other humans cause by wasting,
depleting and degrading the earth’s resources.
d. A way to clean up pollution by stopping chemicals, noises, heat or other agents that are
harmful to humans or other living things.
According the United Nations, more economically developed countries make up 19% of the
world’s population. What percentage of resources do more developed countries consume and
how much of the world’s waste do they produce?
a. 75% of the resources, 12% of the waste
b. 19% of the resources, 25% of the waste
c. 88% of the resources, 75% of the waste
d. 25% of the resources, 10% of the waste.
Environmental degradation includes wasting, depleting and degrading the earth’s natural
capital. One form of environmental degradation is pollution. Which of the following would be
classified as a nondegradable, non-point source pollutant?
a. Arsenic and Mercury found in fish in a river, probably due to industrial waste from
power plants.
b. Human sewage found released from a waste water treatment plant through an effluent
(outflow) pipe.
c. An industrial power plant burns coal and releases sulfides into the atmosphere via a
smokestack.
d. A large semi-truck burning gasoline and releasing CO2 into the atmosphere while it is
driving.
e. A drainage pipe coming from an agricultural area or field and dumping into a nearby
ditch.
When is a country living unsustainably because it has an ecological deficit?
a. If it’s total ecological footprint is greater than its biological capacity to replenish its
renewable resources and absorb resulting wastes and pollution.
b. If it’s total ecological footprint is less than its biological capacity to replenish its
renewable resources and absorb resulting wastes and pollution.
c. If it’s total ecological footprint is the same as its biological capacity to replenish its
renewable resources and absorb resulting wastes and pollution.
d. If a country is using its renewable resources at a rate equal to its sustainable yield, and
absorbing wastes and pollutions at a healthy and safe rate.
e. If humans are all using resources at a rate which will meet their basic needs, but not too
fast, so that there will still be resources for future generations.
What can NOT be composted?
a. Apple Core
b. Rice
c. Cabbage
d. Carrot
e. Metal
What is the difference between municipal solid waste and industrial waste?
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a. Municipal waste is produced from households, institutions and small business, while
industrial waste is produced by mines, factories, refineries, food growers, and large
businesses that supply us with goods and services.
b. Municipal solid waste is composed of sanitary waste products that are either
biodegradable and easily composted, while industrial waste is composed of only
hazardous waste products which damage the soil.
c. Municipal solid waste is produced by mines, factories, refineries, food growers and
large businesses that supply us with goods and services, while industrial waste is
produced from households, institutions and small business.
d. Industrial solid waste is composed of sanitary waste products that are either
biodegradable and easily composted, while municipal waste is composed of only
hazardous waste products which damage the soil.
e. Municipal solid waste is composed of compostable (biodegradable) waste, recycling
products such as plastics and paper, while industrial solid waste is composed of only
landfill waste, which is generally made of metal ores.
Which of the following is the greatest source of solid waste in the United States?
a. Agricultural waste
b. Mining and oil drilling
c. Municipal solid waste
d. Newspaper production
e. Sewage sludge waste
Which of the following correctly orders the methods of solid waste management in terms of
energy required (LEAST ENERGY  MOST ENERGY)?
a. Reuse Recycle Reduce
b. Recycle Reuse Reduce
c. Recycle Reduce Reuse
d. Reduce Reuse Recycle
e. Reduce Recycle Reuse
In the United States, how much municipal solid waste disposed of/goes into landfills?
a. 13%
b. 54%
c. 2%
d. 21%
e. 0%
What is an advantage of recycling aluminum cans instead of disposing of it in landfills?
a. Aluminum can be produced from recycled metal using much less energy than is required
for its production from Aluminum ore.
b. Aluminum can be produced from ore that is chemically reactive and dangerous to
transport, store, and process.
c. Aluminum can be produced from ore that is scarce and found primarily in remote,
inhospitable regions at high latitudes.
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d. Aluminum can be absorbed by plants and then biomagnified in both terrestrial and
aquatic food chains.
e. Aluminum should NOT be recycled; everyone should put it into the landfill only where it
will stay for a long time.
What is the largest component of municipal solid waste in landfills in the United States?
a. Glass
b. Paper
c. Food Scraps
d. Wood and other construction debris
e. Plastic
Which of the following strategies to decrease the landfill volume of packaging material from
food and other consumer products is the most energy efficient?
a. Recovering plastic packaging materials from the waste stream and recycling it.
b. Recovering metal packaging materials from the waste stream and recycling it.
c. Limiting the size of individual beverage containers made from metal, glass, or plastic.
d. Using more packaging materials manufactured from raw materials that are renewable.
e. Promoting the use of non-reusable containers for consumer goods in the community.
Which of the following is an example of open loop recycling?
a. Aluminum cans being melted down and made into aluminum cans
b. Plastic cups being melted down and made into more plastic cups.
c. Plastic water bottles being melted down and made into fleece jackets
d. Paper being broken down, processed and made into more paper.
e. Tin cans being melted down and made into more tin cans.
Which of the following is NOT a part of Integrated Waste Management?
a. Using refillable soft drink/water bottles
b. Using disposable diapers instead of cloth diapers
c. Using reusable canvas bags instead of plastic or paper bags
d. Using tires for the construction of artificial reefs
e. Redesigning automobiles to replace steel parts with aluminum and plastic parts
The International Basel Convention Law is often bypassed because E-waste disposal is often
labeled as material to be recycled and sent across seas. Where is over 70% of the US’s electronic
waste sent to?
a. More developed countries
b. Undeveloped countries
c. West European Countries
d. Other United States locations
e. Canadian providences
Of the following, which is the most serious immediate problem associated with Sanitary
Landfills?
a. Generation of CO2 gas
b. Leachate contamination of groundwater
c. Release of disease organisms
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d. Incomplete degradation of wastes
e. Compaction and settling
Which method of waste disposal reduces the volume of waste but could release toxic emissions
into the atmosphere?
a. Sanitary Landfills
b. Incineration
c. Discharge sewers, streams and rivers
d. Chemical Treatment
e. Biological Treatment
Which method of waste disposal is used most frequently in the United States today?
a. Sanitary Landfills
b. Incineration
c. Discharge sewers, streams and rivers
d. Chemical Treatment
e. Biological Treatment
Which method of waste disposal introduces living decomposers, such as microorganisms to
break down hazardous organic compounds?
a. phytoremediation
b. Incineration
c. Discharge sewers, streams and rivers
d. Chemical neutralization
e. Bioremediation
Which method would be best suited for neutralizing the acidic components of waste?
a. Sanitary Landfills
b. Incineration
c. Discharge sewers, streams and rivers
d. Chemical Treatment
e. Biological Treatment
Which of the following is a disposal method for hazardous wastes that is generally viewed
and/or historically viewed as being an acceptable management approach?
I.
Deep well injection
II.
Surface impoundments
III.
Above ground storage facilities
a. I only
b. II only
c. III only
d. II and III only
e. I, II and III
Which of the following is a method currently being used to deal with/manage hazardous wastes
in the United States?
I.
Bioremediation
II.
Phytoremediation
III.
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Incineration with emission control technologies, such as an electrostatic
precipitator
a. I only
b. II only
c. III only
d. I and III
e. I, II, and III
Which of the following is generally true about sanitary landfills?
a. They are usually located next to airports or mostly in underdeveloped countries where
people can’t afford open landfills.
b. They are usually located in areas where the water table is very close to the surface of
the ground.
c. Ideal locations include seismically-active areas, primarily to accelerate aeration and
waste respiration.
d. Sanitary landfills located in areas with arid climates are usually more prone to
groundwater contamination.
e. Waste materials are usually spread out in thin layers, compacted, and covered daily
(sometimes multiple times per day) with a fresh layer of compacted soil, clay or plastic.
A waste is considered “hazardous” if it possesses one of four properties. Which of the following
is NOT one of those properties?
a. Flammable
b. Reactive/Unstable
c. Toxic: Carcinogenic, mutagenic or teratogenic (beyond set limits)
d. Edible (can be eaten)
e. Corrosive
Which substance is produced by the anaerobic decomposition of organic wastes in landfills, is
known as a greenhouse gas, and can be used as a commercial source of energy? (Hint: When
cows fart, they give off this gas and it’s what made the landfill in the sanitary landfill lab smell so
bad)
a. Lead
b. Dioxin
c. Chlorine
d. Methane
e. Leachate
Which of the following are drawbacks of phytoremediation?
a. Phytoremediation is a very effective method, but it involves massive amounts of
bacteria and microorganisms, whose populations must be amplified.
b. Phytoremediation requires large amounts of chemical necessary to neutralize chemicals
like cadmium ions that escape from sanitary landfills into ground water.
c. Phytoremediation is only effective to the depths of the roots of the plants which purify
the soil, and takes a considerable amount of time because the plants have to grow.
d. Phytoremediation is a very fast fix to managing soils contaminated with heavy metals,
such as cadmium from leachate, that comes out of hazardous landfill sites.
e. Phytoremediation involves extensive use of heavy, large scale machinery during early,
middle and late stages of implementation due to substantial soil hauling.
AP Environmental Science Free Response Question
Directions: Answer all of the questions, which are weighted equally; the suggested time is about 22
minutes for answering each question. Write your answers on the following page. Where calculations are
required, clearly show how you arrived at your answer. Where explanations or discussion is required,
support your answers with relevant information and/or specific examples.
1. The US is considered a “more developed” country and as a result is more efficient at managing
their solid and hazardous waste. In 1984, The US Congress amended the Superfund Act to give
citizens the right to know what toxic chemicals are being stored or released in their
communities. This required 23,800 large manufacturing facilities to report their annual releases
into the environment of nearly 650 toxic chemicals. Examples of chemicals that might be listed
on the EPA website are Cadmium, Lead/TELs, Chlorine, PCBs, NOx, SOx and other VOC’s.
a. Cadmium leaks out of batteries in landfills. Answer the questions below about
Cadmium.
i. Explain how the Cadmium would be get into the environment (into the water
and land) from a landfill.
ii. Describe how cadmium could enter the human body and one specific effect it
can have on human health.
iii. Describe TWO specific steps, that a city or nation can take to reduce the threat
of this pollutant.
b. Discuss TWO reasons why a multinational company would choose to build a
manufacturing facility in a country such as India or China rather than the United States
or Europe?