AICE Environmental Management Study Guide

Flashcards to help review key concepts in Managing Resources for the AICE Environmental Management exam.

What is food security?

When all people, at all times, have physical, social and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food.

What are the primary causes of food insecurity?

Population growth, unsustainable production, land degradation, climate change, water shortages, and poverty.

What are some crops used to produce biofuels?

Sugar crops (sugarcane, sugar-beet), starch crops (corn, sorghum), oilseed crops (soybean, canola).

List three advantages of biofuels.

1. Renewable energy source; 2. Reduces greenhouse gas emissions; 3. Reduces dependence on fossil fuels.

What are some impacts of food insecurity?

Regional food scarcity, nutritional deficiency, poverty, forced migration, conflict, famine, death.

What is intensification in agriculture?

Achieving higher yields through increased inputs, improved practices, and innovations.

Define renewable energy resources.

Resources that are replenishable in a human lifetime, such as solar energy and wind energy.

What does energy security refer to?

The reliable availability of energy sources at an affordable price with consideration of environmental impacts.

What are some impacts of energy insecurity?

Disrupted electricity supply, increased energy prices, job losses, economic recession, civil disruption.

Explain the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA).

It gives the EPA the authority to control hazardous waste from 'cradle-to-grave'.

What is the major disadvantage of landfills?

They release greenhouse gases and can contaminate groundwater.

Define hazardous waste.

Waste that is ignitable, corrosive, reactive, or toxic, originating from various sectors.

What is meant by 'NIMBY' in the context of landfills?

Not In My Backyard; the belief that no one wants a landfill near their home due to various concerns.

Identify a strategy for reducing the impacts of waste disposal.

Reducing, reusing, and recycling materials.

What are the main features of the Superfund program?

Established to clean up US sites polluted with hazardous chemicals and protect groundwater.