Environmental Science Unit 10 - Water Resources and Pollutions

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75 Terms

1

Which is not a reason that snowmelt in the Sierra Nevada range has diminished?

higher demand for water due to population growth

3 multiple choice options

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2

The majority of Earth's freshwater is in

glaciers, icecaps, and snowfields

3 multiple choice options

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3

What percentage of all water on Earth is fresh water?

2.4%

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4

The length of time water stays in a particular compartment is known as its __________ time.

residence

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5

Areas where surface waters filter into an aquifer are called ____________ _______.

recharge zone

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6

Water-rich countries are generally found in the far north latitudes or in the equatorial regions.

true

1 multiple choice option

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7

Globally, agriculture accounts for about ________ of water resources.

75%

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8

_____________ is the gradual sinking of the ground surface due to the depletion of aquifers.

subsidence

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9

According to the UN, how many people in the world lack access to safe drinking water?

1 Billion

3 multiple choice options

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10

Climate change forecasts predicts

dry regions will become drier and wet regions will become wetter

3 multiple choice options

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11

Environmental and social costs of river dam construction include

all of these are environmental and social costs associated with hydroelectric dams

3 multiple choice options

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12

Point source pollutants include runoff from farm fields, feedlots, golf courses, lawns, construction sites, and roads.

false

1 multiple choice option

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13

The main source of water-borne pathogens in untreated or improperly treated human waste.

true

1 multiple choice option

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14

Measures of water quality include

all of these

3 multiple choice options

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15

The largest source of water pollution in the United States is

silt and sediment caused by erosion

3 multiple choice options

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16

The most widespread toxic metal contaminant in North America is ____________.

Mercury

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17

The leading cause of water contamination in the U.S. leading to human illness is

pathogens

3 multiple choice options

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18

Water quality is correlated with development. Which country would be expected to have the worst surface water quality?

Haiti

3 multiple choice options

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19

Which water source poses the greatest challenge to clean up based on accessibility?

groundwater

3 multiple choice options

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20

In an agricultural, crop-growing region which kind of water contaminants would you expect to be the most present?

fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides

3 multiple choice options

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21

In the U.S., nitrates and phosphates in surface waters have increased from point sources in the past few decades but have decreased from non-point sources.

false

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22

The U.S. Clean Water Act was initially passed in what year?

1972

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23

____________ is the use of biological organisms to remove pollution or restore environmental quality.

bioremediation

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24

Which organic wastewater contaminant was detected in greatest abundance during a 2002 USGS study?

steroids

3 multiple choice options

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25

Natural wastewater treatment such as constructed or artificial wetlands are an effective alternative to conventional sewage treatment systems but require more energy to operate.

false

1 multiple choice option

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26

secondary treatment

removal of pathogens and organic compounds

2 multiple choice options

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27

tertiary treatment

removal of dissolved metals, nitrates, and phosphates

2 multiple choice options

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28

primary treatment

physically separating large solids from the liquid portion

2 multiple choice options

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29

What percentage of your body is water?

60%

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30

What is water needed for?

agriculture, industry, transportation, and a host of other human used

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31

What is clean fresh water?

one of our most vital natural resources

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32

The Hydrologic Cycle

water evaporates from moist surfaces, fall as rain or snow, passes through living organisms, and returns to the ocean

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33

What does solar energy drive?

the hydrologic cycle

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34

water resource compartments

the distribution of water which is described in terms of interacting where water resides

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35

What percentage of all fresh water is tied up in glaciers, ice caps, and snowfields?

90%

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36

What is the largest compartment of liquid freshwater, and how does it originate?

Originating as precipitation that percolates into layers of soil and rock, groundwater makes up the largest compartment of liquid, fresh water.

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37

zone of aeration

a shallow layer of soil containing both air and water

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38

zone of saturation

lower soil layer with pores filled with water

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39

water table

top of the zone of saturation that supplies most wells

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40

What percentage of the water supply does the atmosphere contain?

0.001%

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41

residence time

the length of time water stays in a particular compartment

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42

water

a renewable resource, but renewal takes time

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43

water withdrawal

the total amount of water taken from a water body

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44

What percentage of total water withdrawal does agriculture claim?

75%

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45

What is largest single industrial use of water

cooling water for power plants

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46

What percentage industrial water use is used for cooling power plants?

50 to 75%

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47

According to the United Nations, how does daily water consumption in developed countries compare to that in developing nations?

10 times more

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48

In which regions do the biggest problems of water stress and scarcity occur, and what factors contribute to these issues?

Africa and Asia because rainfall is low and poor countries can't afford to adapt

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49

When was. the worst drought in the United States?

in the 1930's when dry years and poor soil conservation resulted in the "dust bow"

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50

What percentage of freshwater does groundwater provide to agriculture and domestic use in the United States?

40%

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51

What does water withdrawal to allow to collapse?

aquifers

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52

When aquifers collapse what follows?

subsidence or sinking of the ground surface follows

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53

What is The 3 Gorges Dam

the largest water diversion project in the world now being built in China

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54

What can big dams in seismically active areas trigger?

earthquakes

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55

watershed

all the land drained by a stream or river

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56

What is the greatest domestic water user?

toilets

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57

pollution

any physical, biological, or chemical change in water quality that adversely affects living organisms or makes water unsuitable for desired uses

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58

point sources

discharge pollution from specific locations, such as drain pipes, ditches, or sewer outfalls such as factories, power plants, sewage treatment plants, underground coal mines, and oil wells

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59

non-point sources

have no specific location where they discharge into a particular body of water, including runoff from farm fields and feedlots, golf courses, lawns and gardens, construction sites, logging areas, roads, streets, and parking lots

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60

What are the most serious water pollutants in terms of human health worldwide?

pathogenic (disease-causing) organisms

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61

What are the most important waterborne diseases?

typhoid, cholera, bacterial and amoebic dysentery, enteritis, polio, infectious hepatitis, and schistosomiasis

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62

What is usually present in a water sample with a infectious pathogens?

coliform bacteria

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63

dissolved oxygen (DO)

levels are often measured to compare water quality in different places

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64

biochemical oxygen demand (BOD)

the amount of dissolved oxygen consumed by aquatic microorganisms

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65

chemical oxygen demand (COD)

a measure of all organic matter in water

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66

oligotrophic

rivers and lakes that have clear water and low biological productivity

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67

eutrophic

waters are rich in organisms and organic materials

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68

cultural eutrophication

when human activities greatly accelerate eutrophication

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69

sediment

a natural part of river systems. Sediment fertilizers floodplains and creates fertile deltas, but human activities, chiefly farming and urbanization, greatly increase sediment loads in rivers

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70

thermal pollution

usually effluent from cooling systems of power plants or other industries, alters water temperature. Raising water temperatures from normal levels can adversely affect water quality and aquatic life

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71

What challenges arise when deep underground aquifers become contaminated, and what is the process for addressing this issue?

it is possible, but expensive, to pump water out of aquifers, clean it, and then pump it back

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72

How can industries reduce pollution?

by recycling or reclaiming materials that otherwise might be discarded in the waste stream

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73

bioremediation

living organisms can clean contaminated water effectively and inexpensively

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74

The 1972 Clean Water Act

established a National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES), which requires an easily revoked permit for any industry, municipality, or other entity dumping wastes in surface waters

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75

What was the ambitious goal of the Clean Water Act?

to return all U.S. surface waters to "fishable and swimmable" conditions

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