chapter 22

Question 1

water pollution

Answer 1

any chemical, biological, or physical change in water quality that has a harmful effect on living organisms or that makes the water unsuitable for desired uses

Question 2

escherichia coli (E. Coli)

Answer 2

-is in our bodies normally, however pathogens can enter food, water, and pools by human wastes

Question 3

biological oxygen demand (BOD)

Answer 3

-the amount of dissolved oxygen consumed by aquatic decomposers

-

Question 4

point sources

Answer 4

• discharge pollutants at specific locations through drain pipes, ditches, or sewer lines into bodies of surface water
  ex: factories, sewage, treatment plants, underground mines and oil tankers

Question 5

non-point sources

Answer 5

• scattered and diffused discharge that cannot be traced to any single site
  ex: acid deposition and runoff of chemicals into surface water from croplands, livestock feedlots, logged forests, urban streets, lawns, golf courses and parking lots

Question 6

oxygen sag curve

Answer 6

• the breakdown of degradable wastes by bacteria depletes dissolved oxygen
• recues or eliminates populations of organisms w high oxygen requirements until the stream is cleansed of wastes

Question 7

eutrophication

Answer 7

the nutrient enrichment of lakes, mostly from runoff of plant nutrients such as nitrates and phosphates from surrounding land

Question 8

cultural eutrophication

Answer 8

when human activity can greatly accelerate the input of plant nutrients to a lake

Question 9

degradable wastes

Answer 9

• rid themselves naturally

ex: manure, paper wastes, biodegradable plastics

Question 10

non-degradable wastes

Answer 10

• contaminants that stay permanently

ex: toxic lead, arsenic and fluoride

Question 11

harmful algal blooms

Answer 11

• red, brown or green toxic tides
• release waterborne and airborne toxins that damage fisheries, kill fish-eating birds, reduce tourism and poison seafood.

Question 12

oxygen depleted zones / dead zones

Answer 12

• form mostly in temperate coastal waters and in land locked seas
• these zones cause most of the aquatic life living there to die or have to switch habitats

ways to reduce these zones:

• reducing nitrogen inputs into water
• planting forests and grasslands to soak up excess nitrogen and keep it out of waterways
• restoring coastal wetlands
• reducing discharge and reduce the burning of fossil fuels

Question 13

London Dumping Convention of 1972

Answer 13

• 100 countries agree not to dump highly toxic pollutants and radioactive wastes in the open sea
• these arguments are hard to monitor and enforce

Question 14

integrated coastal management

Answer 14

when citizens groups, communities, state legislatures and the federal government have worked together to reduce pollution inputs into the bay

strategies:
- establishing land use regulations
- reduce runoff
- banning phosphate detergents
- upgrading sewage treatments plants
- restore wetlands

Question 15

dredge spoils

Answer 15

materials, often laden with toxic metals, scraped from the bottoms of the harbors and rivers to maintain shipping channels

Question 16

Exxon Valdez

Answer 16

• 1989 a tanker ran off the coast of Alaska and spilled 11 million gallons of crude oil
• clean-up that lasted over 20 years
• baseline was missing in Alaska

Question 17

Prestige

Answer 17

An oil tanker that sank in 2002, and leaked about twice as much oil as the Exxon Valdez.

Question 18

Oil Pollution Act 1990

Answer 18

• strengthened EPA’s ability to prevent and respond to catastrophic oil spills
• established a trust fund to clean up spills

Question 19

Clean Water Act 1972

Answer 19

supports the “protection and propagation of fish, shellfish and wildlife and recreation in and on the water”

-issued water quality standards that defined acceptable limits of various pollutants

Question 20

discharge trading policy

Answer 20

• uses market forces to reduce water pollution in the U.S
• under this program a water pollution source is allowed in its permit by buying credits from permit holders with pollution levels below their allowed levels

Question 21

septic tank

Answer 21

• septic tank systems are used for the disposal of domestic sewage and wastewater in rural or suburban areas.
• separates solids from liquids, digests organic matter and discharges the liquid wastes in networks of buried pipes

Question 22

primary sewage treatment

Answer 22

• physical process that uses screens and a grit tank to remove large floating objects and solids.
  ex: settling tank allows suspended solids to settle out as sludge

Question 23

secondary sewage treatment

Answer 23

• biological process in which aerobic bacteria remove BODS.
  ex: wastewater is trickled through beds of of gravel covered with aerobic bacteria or by passing it through an aeration tank.

Question 24

advanced sewage treatment

Answer 24

-series of specialized chemical and physical processes that remove pollutants after going through primary and secondary treatment.