Environmental Ch 16-20 Exam

Municipal Solid Waste

Municipal Solid Waste

refuse collected by municipalities from households, small businesses, schools, hospitals, and town buildings

Common types of MSW

paper products, organic materials, wood, plastic, e-waste

Where is MSW typically disposed of?

Landfills

Issues with E-Waste

can be toxic, is not biodegradable and accumulates in the environment, in the soil, air, water and living things

Closed Loop Recycling

recycling a product into the same product

Open Loop Recycling

recycling one product into a different product

Source Reduction

reducing waste at the source by reducing purchases, recycling, buying in bulk

Brownfields

program set aside with money available for people who want to open a business so instead of cutting trees you buy an existing structure. Abandoned buildings waiting to be used

ED50

used to determine the effective dose that causes 50% of the individuals in a dose – response study to display a harmful effect

Bioaccumulation

an increased concentration of a chemical within an organism over time

Biomagnification

an increase in chemical concentrations in animal tissues as the chemical moves up the food chain

Ocean Acidification

a reduction in the pH of the ocean over an extended period of time

Epidemic

a situation in which a pathogen causes a rapid increase in disease

Pandemic

an epidemic that occurs over a large geographic region

Environmental Injustice

Equal enforcement of laws and elimination of disparities in the exposure of pollutants and other environmental harms affecting different ethnic and socioeconomic groups

Integrated Waste Management

An approach to waste disposal that employs several waste reduction, management, and disposal strategies in order to reduce the environmental impact of MSW

Planned Obsolescence

the process of designing a product so that it will need to be replaced in a few years

Leapfrogging

less developed countries use new technology without first using the precursor technology

Kuznets Curve

As per capita income in a country increases, environmental degradation first increases and then decreases

Theory of Island Biogeography

predicts that the number of plant and animal species on an island is related to the area of the island's landmass and the degree of isolation of the island

Deforestation

Logging and cutting down of forests

Greenhouse Effect

The absorption of infrared radiation by atmospheric gasses and re-radiation of the energy back towards earth

Regulating services

Natural ecosystems

Rainforests and oceans to take in carbon dioxide

Regulate biogeochemical cycles

Exotic Species

live outside their historical range ; Honey Bees

Incineration

The process of burning materials such as paper, plastic, food, and yard waste. Reduces soil volume, byproduct: ash, bottom ash, and fly ash

Emerging Infectious Diseases

An infectious disease that has not been previously described or has not been common for at least 20 years

Many come from pathogens that infect animal hosts

Risk Management

Uses the data on risk assessment and analysis on acceptable levels of risk with other factors

Factors include economic, social, ethical, and political

Intrinsic Values

ecosystems are valuable independent of any benefit to humans

Gross Domestic Product (GDP)

the value of all products and services produced in a year in a given country

Genuine Progress Indicator (GPI)

a measure of economic status that includes personal consumption, income distribution, levels of higher education, resource depletion, pollution, and the health of the population

Human Development Index (HPI)

looks at 3 basic measures of human status. Life expectancy, knowledge, education, and standard of living

Developing countries have…

a lower HDI and high MPI

Developed countries have…

a higher HDI and a lower MPI

Valuation

assigning monetary value to intangible benefits and natural capita

How are ice cores used to determine past atmospheric concentrations?

old air bubbles trapped old gases

Permafrost

Warmer climates melt this > leads to standing water and anaerobic decomposition and produces methane

Risk Analysis

tries to identify a potential hazard and determine the magnitude of potential harm

Incentive

financial and other incentives for lowering emissions based on profits and benefits

Quantitative Risk Assessment

The risk of a rare event that has a high likelihood of causing harm can be equal to the risk of a common event that has a low likelihood of causing harm

Qualitative Risk Assessment

making judgements on perceptions not data

Calculate LD50 in humans

Take the LD50 and divide by 1000

Allergen

Chemicals that cause allergic reactions and cause an abnormal response in immune system

Carcinogen

chemicals that cause Cancer

Neurotoxins

Chemicals that disrupt the nervous system

Teratogens

Chemicals that interfere with the normal development of embryos or fetuses

Endocrine Disruptors

Chemicals that interfere with the normal functioning of hormones

Binds to receptor cells that behave in ways not beneficial to the organism

Data Deficient Species

the amount of available data related to its risk of extinction is lacking in some way

Extinct Species

dying out or extermination of a species

Near-threatened species

close to being threatened or extinct but is not quite there yet

Least-concern species

does not qualify for Critically Endangered, Endangered, Vulnerable or Near Threatened

Montreal Protocol

a global agreement to protect the stratospheric ozone layer by phasing out the production and consumption of ozone-depleting substances

Persistence

The length of time a chemical remains in the environment

Depends on: pH, whether in soil or water, degraded by sunlight or microbes

World-wide Standards

Innocent until proven guilty protocol, precautionary principle, Stockholm Convention

Waste to Energy System

Landfills are lined with filtration systems and methane gas is collected and burned

Wild Species decline in genetic diversity

Low genetic diversity are not well suited for environmental change

Prone to inbreeding depression

Higher genetic diversity allows for a wider range of genotypes

Domestic species decline in genetic diversity

crops and livestock, planting less of a crop, storing seed varieties

how do you reduce pathogens in waste water

Filtration systems and chemicals

Relationship between greenhouse gas and global warming

higher the atmospheric greenhouse gas content the higher the atmospheric temperature

Chlorofluorocarbons

nontoxic, nonflammable chemicals containing atoms of carbon, chlorine, and fluorine

Inbreeding Depression

the reduced survival and fertility of offspring of related individuals

Speciation

the formation of new and distinct species in the course of evolution

Overharvesting

depletes some species to very low numbers and drives others to extinction

Issues with habitat fragmentation

Individuals struggle to move between habitat patches, which can lead to inbreeding and a loss of genetic diversity

Natural capital

the resources of the planet, such as air, water and minerals

Human Capital

human knowledge and abilities

Manufactured capital

all goods and infrastructure that humans produce

Ways to cool the earth

go solar, use public transport, evaporation

What promotes gene flow?

migration of individual organisms that reproduce in their new populations, or to the movement of gametes

Albedo Effect

an expression of the ability of surfaces to reflect sunlight

Ocean acidification makes carbon dioxide levels …

increase

Supply

the amount of a specific good or service that's available

Demand

the amount of something readily available

pros of landfills

inexpensive, relatively eco friendly, energy source, creates jobs

cons of landfills

causes fires, contaminate soil and water, leachate

Best soil for a landfill

clay soil for the bottom and a mixture soil for the top

Life cycle analysis

Examines the materials used and released throughout the lifetime of a product. From the procurement of raw materials through their manufacture, use and disposal

Genetic diversity examples

Different breeds of dogs, different varieties of rose flower, wheat, rice, mangoes

Species diversity example

The Great Barrier Reef

Developing countries health risks

disease, sanitation, lack of workplace safety

Developed country health risks

Emergent infectious diseases

What contributes to species and genetic diversity

migration, gene flow, natural disasters, disease