Solid, Toxic, and Hazardous Waste
1. The largest percentage of the total solid waste produced in the United States is classified as (p. 516)
A. mining wastes like tailings and overburden from mining activities.
B. industrial wastes, including toxic industrial wastes.
C. agricultural wastes, including crop residues and animal manure.
D. municipal wastes.
E. none of the above.
2. The greatest percentage of domestic waste by total weight in the United States consists of (p. 516)
A. glass.
B. metals.
C. plastics.
D. paper.
E. food.
3. The term waste stream refers to (p. 516)
A. the amount of liquid toxic sludge that emerges from the bottom of landfills.
B. the water that comes from tailings ponds created by mining operations.
C. the steady flow of varied wastes that we all produce.
D. open dumping.
E. none of the above.
4. One way that open dumps and new landfills differ is that (p. 518)
A. landfills are often carefully sited.
B. landfills require an impermeable clay or plastic lining.
C. landfills are monitored for leakage.
D. landfills are considerably more expensive.
E. all of the above.
5. Rising disposal costs and more stringent disposal requirements have contributed to an increase in what phenomenon? (pp. 518-519)
A. rich nations now import much more of the developing countries' toxic wastes
B. poor nations now import much more of the developed nations' toxic wastes
C. a marked decrease in the production of toxic wastes
D. a greater reliance on open dumping
E. none of the above
6. The greatest percentage of domestic waste in the United States is (p. 519)
A. recycled.
B. incinerated.
C. exported to developing countries.
D. landfilled.
E. put in an open dump.
7. The greatest percentage of domestic waste in Japan is (p. 519)
A. recycled.
B. incinerated.
C. exported to developing countries.
D. landfilled.
E. put in an open dump.
8. One average, the key advantage incinerators have over landfills is (p. 520)
A. cost.
B. reduced volume.
C. lower tipping costs to haulers.
D. decreased concentration of toxic chemicals.
E. none of the above.
9. Critics of incinerators point out that incinerators (p. 520)
A. do not decrease toxic waste, they just concentrate it.
B. can produce new toxins, like dioxins, not present in the original trash.
C. produce toxic fly ash that can penetrate deep within the lungs.
D. A and B.
E. all of the above.
10. All of the following applies to recycling as an alternative to landfilling EXCEPT (p. 520)
A. recycling is more expensive for municipalities.
B. recycling can reduce pressure to build new landfills.
C. recycling reduces energy consumption.
D. recycling lowers demand for natural resources.
E. none of the above.
11. In developing countries, up to 85% of the waste could be (p. 523)
A. converted back into raw materials for manufacture.
B. eliminated if recycling programs were more prevalent.
C. converted into methane gas and captured for use.
D. reused.
E. none of the above.
12. Perhaps the best way to deal with the solid waste problem is to (p. 524)
A. recycle.
B. reuse.
C. reduce.
D. export.
E. none of the above.
13. Large bottling companies, canneries, and brewing companies often favor (p. 524)
A. reuse over recycling since they save on buying new containers.
B. reducing over recycling.
C. recycling over reuse since they can save money on transportation costs.
D. reuse over recycling since they can have more, smaller plants in regional areas.
E. none of the above.
14. Environmental groups are becoming critical of recycling programs because they think the programs (pp. 524-525)
A. encourage reduction of wastes.
B. discourage public awareness of reusing and reducing wastes.
C. are too expensive to operate on the large scales that are necessary in large cities.
D. discourage the creation of biodegradable packaging materials.
E. none of the above.
15. All of the following are part of the definition of a hazardous waste EXCEPT (p. 525)
A. fatal to humans or laboratory animals at low doses.
B. toxic, carcinogenic, mutagenic, or teratogenic.
C. materials less than 1,000 kg when stored at an approved waste treatment plant.
D. corrosive.
E. highly reactive.
16. The majority of hazardous waste produced in the United States is produced by (p. 526)
A. the mining and metal processing industries.
B. agriculture.
C. plastic industries.
D. chemical and petroleum industries.
E. automobile and farm implement manufacturing.
17. The 1976 federal law that requires that hazardous waste producers, shippers, users, and disposers keep records of toxic and hazardous waste is (p. 526)
A. CERCLA (Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act).
B. National Priority List of the federal Superfund Program.
C. SARA (Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act).
D. RCRA (Resource Conservation and Recovery Act).
E. none of the above.
18. By 1997, the number of hazardous waste sites that had been placed on the National Priority List to receive funding from the federal Superfund Program was (p. 526)
A. 10.
B. about 100.
C. about 1400.
D. about 14,000.
E. none of the above.
19. Brownfield sites refers to (p. 527)
A. contaminated sites that are either abandoned or not being used to their potential.
B. unused farmland.
C. farmland that has been seriously eroded.
D. hazardous waste sites that have been added to the National Priority List of the federal Superfund Program.
E. none of the above.
20. All of the following are potential ways to reduce hazardous wastes to less hazardous substances EXCEPT (p. 530)
A. physical treatments like distillation and charcoal filtration.
B. incineration.
C. chemical processing.
D. bioremediation.
E. permanent retrievable storage.