Deck 47: Environmental Regulation

Question 1

Under the Clean Air Act,_____ were designed to protect vegetation,materials,climate,visibility,and economic values.

A)complementary standards for pollution control
B)primary standards by federal air quality control
C)elementary standards for air quality
D)secondary standards by federal air quality control

Answer 1

D
Explanation: Under the Clean Air Act,the ambient air quality standards are to be set at two levels: (1)primary standards,which are designed to protect the public's health from harm,and (2)secondary standards,which are designed to protect vegetation,materials,climate,visibility,and economic values.

Question 2

Most of the wastes defined as hazardous under RCRA are subject to a "cradle to the grave" tracking system and must be handled and disposed of in defined ways.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Under the Clean Air Act,a factory may be required to limit its emissions of volatile organic compounds to a certain amount per unit of production or hour of operation.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

A developer seeking a local zoning change so she can build a major commercial or residential development may find that she is asked to finance a study of the potential environmental impact of her proposed project,as under the:

A)Federal Water Pollution Control Act.
B)Control of Air Toxics Act.
C)Clean Air Act.
D)National Environmental Policy Act.

Question 5

The EPA required large emitters of greenhouse gasses to report their annual emissions and announced that major emitters will have to address greenhouse gasses in the permits they obtain under the Clean Air Act.

Question 6

In 1990,concerned about toxic air pollutants,Congress specified a list of 189 chemicals for which the EPA is required to issue regulations requiring the installation of the most affordable control technology.

Question 7

Federal water pollution legislation dates back to the 19^th century,when Congress enacted the River and Harbor Act of 1886.

Question 8

Under the Clean Water Act,the federal government has the primary responsibility for preventing,reducing,and eliminating water pollution.

Question 9

Under CERCLA,parties who are responsible for the problem of a hazardous waste site are jointly and severally responsible for the costs of cleanup of the site.

Question 10

An environmental impact statement:

A)is a statement by a manufacturer of hazardous materials listing the toxicity level of those materials.
B)is a statement by state or local governments which notifies the EPA of local environmental concerns.
C)is a statement required by federal law for every major federal action which significantly affects the quality of the environment.
D)is an action statement providing policies and regulations to manage human activities with a view to prevent and reduce hazardous effects on the environment.

Question 11

Under the Clean Air Act,manufacturers may sell vehicles without prior certification from the EPA if they have met the required standards in all prior checks.

Question 12

In recent years,the government has looked to supplement or partially replace the command and control system for environmental problems with the use of economic incentives and voluntary approaches to try to bring about the desired results.

Question 13

The Clean Air Act does not provide for the regulation of fuel additives such as lead.

Question 14

When the EPA expends money to clean up a Superfund site,it has the legal authority to recover its costs from those who were responsible for the problem.

Question 15

The National Environmental Policy Act:

A)does not provide citizens the authority to go to court to force compliance with NEPA.
B)commissions a federal agency to assess the environmental impact of a project after the project is undertaken.
C)requires that an environmental impact statement be prepared for most of the recommendations or reports on legislation.
D)requires an environmental impact statement for every major federal action significantly affecting the quality of the environment.

Question 16

Which of the following statements is true of the Environmental Protection Agency?

A)It was created in 1970,to consolidate the state government's environmental responsibilities.
B)It aims only at pollution problems that can be seen,smelled,or tasted.
C)Much of the initial effort to address environmental problems involved command and control regulation.
D)Over the decade of the 1970s,Congress passed comprehensive new legislation covering only air and water pollution.

Question 17

Failure to comply with the RCRA can subject a violator to both criminal and civil penalties.

Question 18

NEPA requires a federal agency to consider the environmental impact of a project before the project is undertaken.

Question 19

The Safe Drinking Water Act does not regulate disposal of wastes in wells.

Question 20

Dischargers in violation of the Clean Water Act can face up to two years in prison and a fine of $50,000 per day of violation.

Question 21

Primary responsibility for enforcing air quality standards lies with:

A)the federal government.
B)the states.
C)local governments.
D)international agencies.

Question 22

The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act:

A)establishes a program governing the injection of wastes into wells.
B)has the responsibility for designating disposal sites and for establishing the rules governing ocean disposal.
C)provides the federal government and the states with the authority to regulate facilities that generate,treat,store,and dispose of hazardous waste.
D)requires identification and assessment of sites in the United States where hazardous wastes had been spilled,stored,or abandoned.

Question 23

_____ is the organization responsible for certifying that an organization meets the requirements of ISO 14001.

A)The National Safety Council
B)The National Institute of Standards and Technology
C)The American National Standards Institute
D)The American Society for Quality

Question 24

Under the Clean Air Act,ambient air quality standards designed to protect the public's health are known as:

A)primary standards.
B)secondary standards.
C)standard of the commons.
D)elementary standards.

Question 25

The Clean Air Act requires that new stationary sources such as factories and power plants:

A)install the best available technology for reducing air pollution.
B)install the best pollution control technology they can afford.
C)install the best pollution control technology available as long as it won't slow down production.
D)install state-of-the-art control technology unless the source is located in an area where the air quality is better than that required by law.

Question 26

Anyone who discharges industrial wastewater from a point source into a river must:

A)do so in compliance with the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.
B)obtain a permit from the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).
C)obtain a National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES)permit.
D)follow standards prescribed by the Marine Protection,Research,and Sanctuaries Act of 1972. Anyone who discharges industrial wastewater (wastewater that contains pollutants other than just domestic sewage such as wastes from bathrooms)from a point source (such as a pipe or ditch)into a river must obtain a National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES)permit from the state where the discharge takes place or from the EPA.

Question 27

The Clean Water Act prohibits any dredging or filling activity undertaken without a permit in a wetland that is:

A)located in the United States,irregardless of navigability.
B)part of the navigable waters of the United States.
C)under federal protection.
D)habituated by marine life.

Question 28

Which of the following is true for air pollution controls on transportation provided by the Clean Air Act?

A)Under the Clean Air Act,no manufacturer may sell vehicles subject to emission standards without prior certification from the EPA that the vehicles meet the required standards.
B)The 1970 Clean Air Act required a reduction by 1976 of 60 percent in the amount of the carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons emitted by automobiles.
C)To satisfy the requirements of the 1970 Clean Air Act,manufacturers could rely on already existing technology to meet the pollution control standards.
D)The 1970 Clean Air Act does not provide for the regulation and registration of fuel additives such as lead.

Question 29

Which of the following caused the long-range transport of some pollutants,contributing to the formation of acid rain,snow,fog,or dry deposition?

A)Electric-generating facilities installing scrubbers.
B)Electric-generating facilities switching to lower-sulfur coal.
C)Electric-generating facilities installing "clean coal" technologies.
D)Electric-generating facilities building tall smokestacks.

Question 30

Which of the following is true of the Safe Drinking Water Act?

A)A public water system is defined to include any supplier of water to the public that has 30 or more service connections or serves 250 people or more at least 180 days a year.
B)The standards must be met by "public water systems" and applied at the point the drinking water enters the water distribution system.
C)The standards are not applicable to private water suppliers but only to municipalities that provide water to their citizens.
D)While states are required to enforce the drinking water standards,the federal government does not have the right to enforce them.

Question 31

_____ requires persons who generate,treat,store,or transport specified quantities of hazardous waste to notify the EPA of that fact.

A)The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act
B)The Federal Water Pollution Control Act
C)The Compensation,and Liability Act
D)The Safe Drinking Water Act

Question 32

ISO 14001 includes:

A)Guidelines for environmental auditing-audit procedures.
B)Life cycle assessment-principles and guidelines.
C)Guidelines for environmental auditing-general principles.
D)Environmental management systems-specification with guidance for use.

Question 33

The 1990 amendments to the Clean Air Act:

A)brought in civil penalties for violating the law-a minimum of $2,500 for a first offense up to $50,000 per day and two years in prison for subsequent violations.
B)state that any dredging or filling activity in a wetland that is part of the navigable waters of the United States requires a permit before the activity can be commenced.
C)require the availability of oxygenated fuels in specified areas of the country that are having difficulty meeting the air quality limits at least part of the year.
D)require electricity-generating facilities to build tall smokestacks so that emissions were dispersed over a broader area.

Question 34

The disposal of wastes into wells is a focus of:

A)the Clean Water Act.
B)the Marine Protection,Research,and Sanctuaries Act.
C)RCRA.
D)the Safe Drinking Water Act.

Question 35

Under the Clean Water Act,the primary responsibility for preventing,reducing,and eliminating water pollution lies with:

A)international agencies.
B)the federal government.
C)the EPA.
D)the states.

Question 36

_____ was drafted with the intention of addressing the issue of global warming through collective international action.

A)NEPA
B)The Clean Water Act
C)The Koyoto Protocol
D)The Copenhagen Consensus

Question 37

The _____ of 1886 provided that in order to deposit or discharge "refuse" into a navigable waterway,a discharge permit had to be obtained from the Army Corps of Engineers.

A)River and Harbor Act
B)Clean Water Act
C)Federal Water Pollution Control Act
D)National Pollution Discharge Elimination Act

Question 38

VOCs are:

A)substances which combine with nitrogen oxides to become ozone.
B)substances which release chlorines and deplete ozone.
C)fumigants used on citrus and grain products.
D)also known as catalytic converters.

Question 39

Which of the following is a true statement about the Clean Water Act?

A)It was the 1970 amendment to the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA).
B)The act provides that a discharge permit has to be obtained from the Army Corps of Engineers in order to deposit or discharge "refuse" into a navigable waterway.
C)One of the goals of the Act was to have no discharges of pollutants into the nation's waters by 1985.
D)Under the Clean Water Act,the federal government has the primary responsibility for preventing,reducing,and eliminating water pollution.

Question 40

The wetland permit program:

A)is administered by the Koyoto Protocol with EPA involvement.
B)can limit a landowner's use of property when that use is viewed as injurious to the values protected by the Clean Water Act.
C)specified a list of 189 chemicals for which EPA is required to issue regulations requiring the installation of the maximum available control technology.
D)established a program governing the injection of wastes into wells.

Question 41

NIMBY stands for:

A)a national and international measurement organization which regulates environmental emissions in North American countries.
B)"not in my backyard"-a syndrome in which people want the wastes from their community disposed of in any place but their own.
C)national industrial measures for barren industrial yards.
D)a national institution for the maintenance of biological and irrigational yield.

Question 42

"Community Right to Know" legislation:

A)requires an industry to disclose to the community the presence of certain hazardous chemicals.
B)is the law in most states,under the 1958 amendments to Superfund.
C)is only effective in those states which have adopted such requirements under state law.
D)establishes a cradle-to-the-grave regulatory system.

Question 43

When is a discharge permit required under the Clean Water Act?

Question 44

Explain the Clean Air Act's approach for dealing with air pollution,including the role of the states.

Question 45

Under the RCRA,most of the wastes defined as hazardous are subject to:

A)a "cradle to the grave" tracking system.
B)pretreatment standards,in the case of industrial discharge permits.
C)proper disposal by treatment at the point the waste enters the water distribution system.
D)on-site treatment before it enters the sewer system.

Question 46

Describe Superfund's "Community Right to Know" requirement.

Question 47

Rogers owned property which he discovered was contaminated with hazardous waste.He learned that twenty years earlier,Smith's Manufacturing had owned the property and used it as a disposal site for manufacturing chemicals.Rogers also learned that Jones' Trucking had hauled the chemicals to the site under contract with Smith.Under these circumstances,which,if any,of the parties can be liable for the costs of cleaning up the site under CERCLA?

A)Smith is potentially liable under CERCLA.
B)Rogers is potentially liable under CERCLA.
C)Smith and Jones are potentially liable under CERCLA.
D)Rogers,Smith,and Jones are all potentially liable under CERCLA. Under the given circumstances,Rogers,Smith,and Jones are all potentially liable under CERCLA.The EPA has the authority to require that a site be cleaned up by those persons who were responsible for it,either as the owner or operator of the site,a transporter of wastes to the site,or the owner of wastes deposited at the site.

Question 48

What are the major requirements a person who generates,treats,stores,or transports significant quantities of hazardous waste must meet?

Question 49

Employees of a company that illegally disposes of hazardous waste without a proper permit:

A)may not be held criminally liable for their acts if their acts were undertaken on behalf of the corporation.
B)may not be held criminally liable for their acts unless they acted without the knowledge or approval of the corporation.
C)may be held criminally liable for actions undertaken on behalf of the corporation.
D)may be held liable to a minimum of $25,000 for a first offense up to $150,000 per day and five years in prison for subsequent violations.

Question 50

What is the consequence of placing a site on the National Priority List for cleanup under "Superfund?" Who can be responsible for cleanup costs of such a site?