Deck 42: Applied Environmental Microbiology

Question 1

Fecal enterococci are increasingly being used as an indicator of fecal contamination in brackish and marine water because they die at a faster rate than fecal coliforms thus providing a more reliable indicator of pollution.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

Chlorination alone will usually suffice to inactivate viruses present in drinking water.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

Cryptosporidium is an important waterborne disease. This organism is a

A) virus.
B) bacterium.
C) fungus.
D) protozoan.

Answer 3

D

Question 4

The presence-absence test is a modification of which test?

A) membrane filter
B) MPN
C) virus plaque assay
D) none of these

Question 5

The membrane filter technique can be used in all waters and has completely replaced the MPN technique.

Question 6

Indicator organisms are added to drinking water to test whether the purification process is being carried out effectively.

Question 7

Canada geese have become a major source of Giardia and Cryptosporidium contamination of soil and fresh water.

Question 8

Methods used to remove or destroy viruses from drinking water include

A) coagulation and filtration.
B) chemical oxidation and high pH.
C) photooxidation.
D) all of the choices

Question 9

Potable water is unfit for consumption or recreation because of the high levels of microbial contaminants present.

Question 10

All coliforms can grow at 44.5 $\degree$ C.

Question 11

If a leach field floods it becomes anoxic and effective treatment ceases.

Question 12

Fecal coliforms are useful indicator organisms for the contamination of water by

A) agricultural fertilizer runoff.
B) sewage.
C) phosphates.
D) all of the choices

Question 13

Coliforms and fecal coliform are often differentiated based on their responses to

A) temperature.
B) salinity.
C) pressure.
D) heavy metals.

Question 14

Cryptosporidium has recently become of concern because it is hard to remove from water supplies.

Question 15

In the testing of water for coliforms, the presumptive test involves detection of

A) gas production in a lactose broth medium.
B) sheen production on a selective medium.
C) a gram-negative nonspore-forming rod.
D) all of the choices

Question 16

Removal of 99% of the indicator organisms in drinking water will be sufficient to avoid disease transmission.

Question 17

Rapid sand filtration, used in many water purification plants, is sufficient to ensure that Giardia will be consistently removed.

Question 18

Slow sand filtration effectively removes

A) Giardia lamblia.
B) Cryptosporidium parvum.
C) most heavy metals.
D) viruses.

Question 19

Potable water

A) requires boiling to make it safe to drink.
B) is not suitable for human consumption.
C) is suitable for human consumption.
D) requires chemical or biological treatment to remove heavy metals.

Question 20

Molecular techniques using 16S rRNA gene targeted primers are now used routinely to detect coliforms in water.

Question 21

Additions of a remediating microbe to natural environments can be more successful if

A) the microorganism is added together with a microhabitat that gives the organism physical protection.
B) the microorganism is inoculated onto a leaf, root, or a seed.
C) the microorganism is provided with nutrients.
D) all of the choices

Question 22

The biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) test is primarily a measure of carbon demand and should not include nitrogen oxidation demand.

Question 23

Which of the following contributes to the removal of organic material in home sewage treatment system leach fields?

A) aerobic digestion
B) adsorption of organic material
C) entrapment of microbes
D) all of the choices

Question 24

Removal of environmental pollutants using microorganisms is called __________.

Question 25

The acceleration of microbiological processes by the addition of known active microorganisms to soils, waters, or other complex systems is called __________.

Question 26

Phytoremediation is the use of microorganisms to stimulate the extraction, degradation, adsorption, stabilization, or volatilization of soil contaminants.

Question 27

Filamentous organisms such as Sphaerotilus and Thiothrix can lower the efficiency of activated sludge processes by causing

A) anaerobic sludge.
B) acidified sludge.
C) bulking sludge.
D) building sludge.

Question 28

In the biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) test, the factor that should limit biological activity is

A) nitrogen.
B) phosphorus.
C) oxygen.
D) carbon.

Question 29

Sewage treatment that involves horizontal flow in an agitated aeration tank is referred to as

A) lagooning.
B) activated sludge treatment.
C) trickling filter processing.
D) endogenous respiration.

Question 30

The inability of the "superbug" to successfully clean up oil spills in the ocean environment was mostly a matter of its inability to survive and compete in that environment.

Question 31

To enhance hydrocarbon degradation in marine environments, nutrient pellets can be used. These function most effectively if they are

A) nucleophilic.
B) oleophilic.
C) ionophilic.
D) electrophilic.

Question 32

Activated sludge is used in which sewage treatment step?

A) primary
B) secondary
C) tertiary
D) all of the choices

Question 33

The enhancement of the degradation of recalcitrant compounds by the addition of an easily metabolized carbon source such as glucose is called

A) spiking.
B) cometabolism.
C) balancing.
D) Such enhancement does not occur.

Question 34

Primary treatment of sewage involves the use of which type of process?

A) biological removal of dissolved organic matter
B) physical/chemical removal of insoluble particulate materials
C) biological removal of inorganic nutrients
D) virus removal/inactivation

Question 35

Secondary treatment of sewage involves the use of which type of process?

A) biological removal of dissolved organic matter
B) physical/chemical removal of insoluble particulate materials
C) biological removal of inorganic nutrients
D) virus removal/inactivation

Question 36

In the total organic carbon (TOC) test, microorganisms are used to measure the levels of carbon in a water sample.

Question 37

It is usually beneficial to add nitrogen when one attempts to stimulate hydrocarbon degradation in the ocean.

Question 38

The solubilization of metals from low-grade ores by microorganisms is called __________.

Question 39

Which of the following is not an advantage of anaerobic sludge digestion?

A) Most of the biomass produced aerobically is used for methane production.
B) The remaining sludge can be dried easily before disposal.
C) Heavy metals are concentrated in the sludge.
D) all of the choices

Question 40

A septic tank will function effectively without a leach field.