Environmental Science Final Review

Flashcards about acid precipitation, renewable energy, coal power plants, solar panels, waste disposal, fracking, mining laws, incineration, recycling, landfills, and other environmental topics.

What are the primary components of acid precipitation?

Sulfuric and nitric acid, formed from sulfur dioxide, water, and nitrogen oxides.

Where does sulfuric acid rain mostly occur?

Eastern regions, due to coal-burning power plants in the Midwest.

Where does nitric acid rain mostly occur?

Western regions, due to motor vehicle pollution.

What are negative externalities of production?

The social and environmental costs of producing a product.

What was the goal of Germany's National Renewable Energy Act?

To produce 20% of power from renewable sources by 2020.

How do coal-fired power plants generate electricity?

By burning coal to heat water, creating steam that spins a turbine connected to a generator.

How do solar panels work?

By converting sunlight into direct current (DC) electricity, which then may need to be converted to alternating current (AC) for household use.

What is net metering?

A system where excess electricity produced by solar panels is sent to the power grid, and the owner receives a tax credit.

What are the disadvantages of solar panels?

They don't work at night or on cloudy days, are more expensive than fossil fuels, and are inefficient (converting only 15-20% of the sun's energy).

How does a thermal solar power plant work?

Mirrors focus sun rays on synthetic oil tubes, heating the oil, which heats water to produce steam, which turns turbines connected to generators.

What are the four ways solid trash is disposed of?

Open dumps, landfills, sanitary landfills, and secured landfills.

What is a key difference between sanitary and secured landfills?

Sanitary landfills are for regular trash, while secured landfills are specifically for hazardous waste with stricter containment and monitoring.

What are some cons of fracking?

Depletes aquifers, contaminates drinking water, involves hazardous chemicals, can cause earthquakes, and has high methane and CO2 emissions.

What are some pros of fracking?

Cheaper natural gas, lowered natural gas prices, job creation, and a shift from coal to natural gas reduces air pollution.

What were the key provisions of the 2005 Energy Act regarding fracking?

Allowed valley fill for mining companies and exempted fracking companies from disclosing chemicals.

What does the 1872 General Mining Law encourage?

Mineral exploration of hard rock minerals but does not enforce land reclamation, leading to acid mine drainage.

What does the 1977 Surface Mining and Reclamation Act require?

Companies to restore surface-mined land and places a tax on companies to restore land disturbed before the act.

What is acid mine drainage?

Rain or groundwater seeping through mines, carrying sulfuric acid and polluting water supplies.

What are waste-to-energy incinerators?

Waste management facilities that combust wastes to produce electricity.

What are the four key characteristics of chlorinated chemicals like PCBs?

Chlorinated hydrocarbon, persistent, fat-soluble (insoluble in water), and biomagnifies.

What is dioxin?

A byproduct of Agent Orange, and a carcinogen and suspected teratogen found in water, food, and breastmilk.

What is chloracne?

A skin condition caused by exposure to dioxin, characterized by extensive acne, darkened skin, and lesions.

What was Agent Orange and what was its use?

A herbicide used during the Vietnam War to kill vegetation.

What are some pros of using coal?

Good supply, high net energy yield, and low cost due to government subsidies.

What are some cons of using coal?

High environmental impact, severe pollution, threat to human health, high CO2 emissions, and release of mercury and sulfur dioxide.

What are some pros of using oil?

Good supply, low cost, high net energy yield, and easy transport.

What are some cons of using oil?

The need for substitutes, encouragement of waste due to low prices, air pollution, CO2 emissions, and moderate water pollution.

What is the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) of 1976?

A law to control the disposal of toxic waste, stop open dumps, count waste sites, and regulate landfills with a permit system.

What is a manifest system in waste disposal?

Paperwork used by truckers when disposing of waste, signed by producers, truckers, disposal facilities, and sent to the EPA.

What does the Superfund law (1980) provide?

A fund to speed up the cleanup of hazardous toxic sites, allowing the EPA to clean, fine, and sue.

What are some disadvantages of the Superfund law?

States must pay a percentage of cleanup costs and the variety of toxic wastes prevents standardized regulatory protocols.

What were some amendments to the Clean Air Act in 1977?

Extended timelines for meeting standards for pollutants like lead, particulates, CO, and SO2, and included regulations for nitrogen oxides.

What is the LA Plan in regards to air quality?

Different, stricter air quality standards than federal standards, including outlawing new drive-throughs and stricter regulations for oil refineries and power plants.

What is the irony of landfills?

While water aids decomposition, landfills are designed to keep water out to prevent leaching.

How can landfills and sewage treatment plants work together?

Sewage sludge can provide moisture to break down trash in landfills and methane from the trash can be recycled back to the sewage plant.

What are the components of smog?

Nitrous oxides and hydrocarbons, mainly from tailpipes.

What are some pros of incineration?

Reduces trash volume, less need for landfills, low water pollution, ash can be buried, energy sales reduce costs, and modern controls reduce air pollution.

What are some cons of incineration?

Costly to build, expensive compared to landfill hauling, citizen opposition to location, air pollution and CO2 emissions, and competition with recycling.

What are some pros of recycling?

Reduces air and water pollution, saves energy, reduces mineral demand, reduces greenhouse gas emissions, reduces solid waste production, protects biodiversity, saves landfill space, and creates green jobs.

What are some cons of recycling?

Can cost more than burying in landfills, may lose money for glass and some plastics, reduces profits for incinerators and landfills, and can be inconvenient due to source separation.

What are some pros of sanitary landfills?

No open burning, low odor, low groundwater pollution (if properly placed), built quickly, low operating costs, can handle lots of waste, and can be built over.

What are some cons of sanitary landfills?

Noise and traffic, dust, air pollution from trucks and gases, methane gas and CO2 emissions, slow decomposition, and eventual leakage.