Environmental Science Exam Bank
Course Introduction
Environmental Science is an interdisciplinary field that explores the complex interactions between natural systems and human activities. This course examines the physical, chemical, and biological processes that shape the environment, as well as the impact of human actions on ecosystems, climate, and natural resources. Key topics include biodiversity, pollution, sustainable development, energy use, and environmental policy. Through scientific inquiry and critical analysis, students gain the knowledge and skills necessary to understand environmental challenges and contribute to solutions that promote a more sustainable future.
Recommended Textbook
Environmental Science 12th Edition by Wright
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23 Chapters
1939 Verified Questions
1939 Flashcards
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Page 2
Chapter 1: Science and the Environment
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following is not a renewable resource?
A)the sun beating down on a rain forest
B)plants,such as bamboo and rice,growing in moist environments
C)oil reserves,buried deep below the surface of the ground
D)water flowing through a dam
Answer: C
Q2) In 1962,Rachel Carson published her book Silent Spring.Seven years later,in 1969,the Cuyahoga River again caught fire and gained national attention.Based upon the concerns she expressed in Silent Spring,which of the following would have been her most likely reaction to learning of the 1969 Cuyahoga River fire?
A)The river fires illustrate one of the many ways we are polluting our environment.
B)If we used more solar photocells and windmills,this would not happen.
C)The industries responsible should be investigated by the EPA.
D)This is a perfect example of what happens when we use our rivers for transportation. Answer: A
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3
Chapter 2: Economics, Politics, and Public Policy
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Sample Questions
Q1) According to 2011 World Bank studies,which of the following is an example of the dominant form of wealth for most countries?
A)minerals and fossil fuels
B)fisheries,forests,and large supplies of water
C)machinery,vehicles,highways,and stock investments
D)the intangible wealth of education and educational systems
Answer: D
Q2) Equity in the distribution of resources is promoted by growth in A)sustainable harvesting of renewable natural resources.
B)human resources and produced capital.
C)the harvesting of non-renewable and non-renewable natural capital.
D)transportation and navigation systems to move produced capital.
Answer: B
Q3) One way to participate in the development of environmental policies is to become a member of an NGO.What is an NGO?
A)NGO stands for nongovernmental organization.
B)NGO stands for national geographic organization.
C)NGO stands for neogeopolitical organization.
D)NGO stands for natural global outlook.
Answer: A
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Chapter 3: Basic Needs of Living Things
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which one of the following statements is correct?
A)Atoms are composed of protons and compounds are composed of neutrons and electrons.
B)Atoms are the smallest components of an element that have the element's properties.
C)Solids are made of elements,liquids and gases are made of compounds.
D)Water is an element made from two compounds.
Answer: B
Q2) Which one of the following is the broadest scope of ecological study?
A)ecosystem ecology
B)landscape ecology
C)population ecology
D)community ecology
Answer: B
Q3) Which of the following best represents potential energy?
A)cars stopped at an intersection
B)sunlight shining on people on a beach
C)a charged battery in a flashlight
D)a breeze blowing across the top of a lake
Answer: C
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Page 5
Chapter 4: Populations and Communities
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Sample Questions
Q1) In an ecosystem,the elimination of one new species by another because of direct competition for the same resources is an example of
A)intraspecific competition.
B)the competitive exclusion principle.
C)character displacement.
D)resource partitioning.
Q2) The evolution of a new species is most like
A)designing a new home and building it.
B)remodeling an old home into a new one.
C)using parts of many junked cars to construct a new one.
D)creating a virtual car on a computer.
Q3) The relationship between the moose and wolf populations on Isle Royale reveals
A)intraspecific competition.
B)top-down and bottom-up population regulation.
C)the high and steady environmental resistance on wolves.
D)the high and steady environmental resistance on moose.
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6
Chapter 5: Ecosystems: Energy, Patterns, and Disturbance
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Sample Questions
Q1) The most important outcome for ecosystem management is
A)ecological sustainability.
B)economic productivity.
C)recreational use of managed regions.
D)opportunities to harvest natural resources.
Q2) Compared to an ecosystem with just a single stage of succession,an ecosystem with a variety of successional stages
A)is more likely to experience forest fires.
B)has greater biodiversity.
C)is less likely to experience erosion.
D)has a much lower rate of primary productivity.
Q3) Dung beetles feeding on the waste of cattle grazing on hay in a field represent
A)a decomposer feeding on the wastes of a consumer eating a producer.
B)a producer feeding on the wastes of a producer eating a consumer.
C)a producer feeding on the wastes of a consumer eating a producer.
D)a consumer feeding on the wastes of a decomposer eating a producer.
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Chapter 6: Wild Species and Biodiversity
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following would most likely have the greatest impact on a large ecosystem?
A)loss of a keystone species from the ecosystem
B)construction of a two-lane gravel road through the middle of the ecosystem
C)construction of a lodge and trails to permit better access for ecotourists
D)allow the ecosystem to burn on a natural cycle
Q2) Wild plants often have greater resistance to parasites than domesticated plants because the wild plants experience
A)natural selection,while domesticated plants experience artificial selection.
B)natural selection,while domesticated plants do not experience any selection.
C)artificial selection,while domesticated plants experience natural selection.
D)artificial selection,while domesticated plants do not experience any selection.
Q3) Ecosystem sustainability primarily results from the
A)relationships between the organisms in an ecosystem.
B)number of predators found in the ecosystem.
C)frequency of fires or other natural disasters in an ecosystem.
D)total amount of biomass that exists in an ecosystem.
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Chapter 7: The Use and Restoration of Ecosystems
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Sample Questions
Q1) The application of the precautionary principle to a commercial fishery whose primary catch species is in decline would result in
A)many years in which no fish are harvested at all.
B)an optimal population size that is just about the maximum sustainable yield.
C)a total allowable catch above the best estimate of the maximum sustainable yield.
D)a total allowable catch below the best estimate of the maximum sustainable yield.
Q2) What global event happened about 35 years ago that helped some fishing areas recover?
A)All commercial fishing was limited to hand lines instead of nets.
B)Nations extended their jurisdiction from 12 to 200 miles offshore.
C)The size of the vessels used for commercial fishing was restricted to 200 tons.
D)International agreements limited the size of fish that could be kept and sold.
Q3) The most sustainable worldwide expansion of aquaculture is the production of
A)herbivorous species in the open-ocean.
B)carnivorous species in mangrove swamps.
C)herbivorous species in estuarine waters.
D)carnivorous species in lakes and rivers.
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Page 9
Chapter 8: The Human Population
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following most illustrates environmental stewardship?
A)paving a parking lot with blacktop outside of a dorm
B)using non-biodegradable pesticides on your garden
C)using only antibacterial soaps for washing dishes
D)riding your bike to work instead of driving
Q2) Which revolutions relied most heavily on fossil fuels?
A)Medical Revolution and Industrial Revolution
B)Environmental Revolution and Medical Revolution
C)Green Revolution and Industrial Revolution
D)Neolithic Revolution and Environmental Revolution
Q3) About 30,000 years ago,humans survived most like which of the following organisms?
A)roaming groups of omnivorous chimps
B)herds of herbivorous bison and elk
C)flocks of herbivorous geese migrating broadly across continents
D)isolated carnivorous cougars hunting for their own meals
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10
Chapter 9: Population and Development
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Sample Questions
Q1) You are a newly appointed advisor in a government project to help move a developing country forward economically.With limited financial resources and staffing,which of the following would be your highest priority?
A)create new businesses by partnering with developed nations
B)help the government promote family planning throughout the country
C)shift the focus of agriculture to that which will produce the highest yields of nutritious foods
D)build up the ports of the country to increase the ability to import and export products
Q2) In general,high poverty produces
A)high fertility and greater environmental damage.
B)low fertility and greater environmental damage.
C)high fertility and less environmental damage.
D)low fertility and less environmental damage.
Q3) Which of the following is a part of family-planning services?
A)instruction on breast-feeding
B)advice on the best timing of an additional pregnancy following a birth
C)education to reduce the risks of sexually transmitted disease
D)All of the above.
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Chapter 10: Water: Hydrologic Cycle and Human Use
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Sample Questions
Q1) A zookeeper arrives at work and begins her day by filling up the coffeemaker with tap water.Washing some vegetables off in a sink,she prepares meals for the monkeys.Later in the day,she washes down the animals enclosures into the zoos sewage system and sprinkles the plants growing in a nearby garden.What did the zookeeper do that represents a consumptive use of water?
A)using tap water for coffee
B)using water to wash food
C)using water for the garden
D)using water to clean out a cage
Q2) In the figure,blue water is represented by A)rain.
B)clouds.
C)water vapor.
D)clouds and water vapor.
Q3) If water is depleted from an aquifer faster than the recharge rate,
A)the water table will rise.
B)surface water will stop percolating downward.
C)wetlands will flood.
D)sinkholes may form.
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Page 12
Chapter 11: Soil: Foundation for Land Ecosystems
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Sample Questions
Q1) No-till farming would be most beneficial for farmers
A)with steeply sloped fields.
B)who plant a cash crop every third year.
C)who typically experience minimal soil erosion.
D)using contour strip cropping.
Q2) Based upon soil particle size,the largest to smallest are
A)sand,silt,and clay.
B)sand,clay,and silt.
C)clay,sand,and silt.
D)silt,sand,and clay.
Q3) Which one of the following would cause the greatest soil erosion to a forested hillside?
A)removing the dead trees
B)cutting down and removing all of the trees
C)converting the hillside from forest to grass
D)planting new trees in the forest
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13
Chapter 12: The Production and Distribution of Food
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Sample Questions
Q1) Ethanol production in the United States
A)is likely to decline soon as the price for corn as food increases.
B)accounts for only 5% of the U.S.crop.
C)will likely increase,making less corn available to people and livestock as food.
D)has not contributed to rises in corn prices.
Q2) The document produced by the Rio+20 conference in 2012 included
A)having the goal of 100% sustainable agriculture by 2020.
B)the goal of eliminating world hunger.
C)pressing rapidly forward with the development of new GM crops.
D)a consensus that global conditions for natural disasters,more jobs and sustainable energy were dramatically improving.
Q3) If the total global production of grains cannot be significantly increased in the next 50 years,and the human population continues to increase,by perhaps 50%,how will we feed the people without destroying the world? One strategy that would likely succeed is to
A)increase our use of fossil fuels in agriculture.
B)engineer plants that can grow without sunlight.
C)greatly reduce the amount of meat in our diets.
D)increasingly rely on fungi for nutritional needs.
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Page 14
Chapter 13: Pests and Pest Control
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Sample Questions
Q1) The parasitic relationship illustrated in this figure represents a type of A)cultural control.
B)natural enemies control.
C)genetic control.
D)natural chemical control.
Q2) Insecticides would be most useful in combating
A)mosquitoes that spread malaria.
B)weeds that infect our agricultural fields.
C)bacteria,such as Salmonella,which sometimes contaminate meat.
D)fungi that contribute to molds and mildew that lead to respiratory infections.
Q3) APHIS oversees both
A)organic and USDA Organic certifications.
B)agricultural bioterrorism and safety of GM organisms.
C)regulation of pesticides and herbicides.
D)the U.S.Departments of Agriculture and Food Security.
Q4) The use of pesticides crosses the economic threshold when the cost of
A)crop damage is more than the cost of the pesticide.
B)pesticide is more than the cost of the crop damage.
C)harvesting the crop is more than the cost of raising the crop.
D)cost of raising the crop is more than the cost of the crop damage.
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Chapter 14: Energy From Fossil Fuels
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Sample Questions
Q1) In the 1900s,fuel efficiency in transportation greatly increased when engines were converted from
A)natural gas to coal and steam.
B)oil to coal and steam.
C)coal and steam to gasoline.
D)natural gas to gasoline.
Q2) CHP conserves energy in industrial buildings by
A)charging batteries when power demand drops.
B)drawing on the heat of the earth to make electricity.
C)installing solar panels on the top of power plants.
D)using the waste heat generated to warm buildings.
Q3) The large structures in this photograph are
A)smokestacks from a coal-fired power plant.
B)special wind turbines that capture swirling wind to produce electricity.
C)towers used to cool water heated by a coal-fired power plant.
D)combustion chambers used to burn natural gas to generate electricity.
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16
Chapter 15: Nuclear Power
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Sample Questions
Q1) Radioactive substance A breaks down to substance B with a half-life of 1,000 years.If we start out with four kilograms of radioactive substance A,how much of those four kilograms of substance A will remain in 3,000 years?
A)250 grams
B)500 grams
C)1 kilogram
D)2 kilograms
Q2) The two reactions indicated in this figure represent
A)fusion at the top and fission at the bottom.
B)fission at the top and fusion at the bottom.
C)two types of fission reactions.
D)two types of fusion reactions.
Q3) If a nuclear reactor generates the expected amount of heated water but no electricity,it is most likely a problem with the A)fuel rods.
B)control rods.
C)moderator.
D)turbogenerator.
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17
Chapter 16: Renewable Energy
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Sample Questions
Q1) A tidal barrage would be used to generate electricity
A)at the mouth of a bay.
B)at the bottom of a large lake.
C)near the tip of an ocean peninsula.
D)in the open ocean.
Q2) Unlike solar and wind facilities,coal-burning and nuclear power plants
A)can be constructed more quickly.
B)can be added gradually as demand grows.
C)can consistently generate electricity at night.
D)do not pose as great a security risk.
Q3) The two large tanks in this photo
A)use manure,water,and anaerobic bacteria to produce biogas.
B)use manure,water,and aerobic bacteria to produce biogas.
C)burn unused parts of crop plants to generate heat for homes.
D)collect and stores carbon dioxide in underground wells.
Q4) Solar trough technology converts
A)the ultraviolet light in sunlight directly into electricity.
B)the heat of the sun into steam to drive a turbogenerator.
C)sunlight into electricity which then produces steam heat.
D)the direct current generated by photovoltaic cells into alternating current.
Page 18
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Chapter 17: Environmental Hazards and Human Health
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Sample Questions
Q1) In the United States,we could save more lives if we simply
A)drove more safely and did not abuse drugs.
B)stopped smoking and reduced obesity.
C)stopped drug abuse and suicides.
D)reduced the number of infections with HIV.
Q2) During a January storm in Vermont,a highway truck crashes and spills 3 tons of rock salt onto the side of the road,covering grasses and tumbling down to a creek.Learning about this accident,you wonder about the environmental consequences.This sort of salt naturally occurs in the soil.According to the U.S.Environmental Protection Agency's definition of pollution,this spill would be considered as a
A)nontoxic,non-polluting spill of a natural substance.
B)pollutant that should be cleaned up as much as possible.
C)nutrient supplement,and no environmental harm is expected.
D)problem better suited for the CDC.
Q3) Which of the following products contains the greatest number of carcinogens?
A)a thick vanilla milkshake
B)a Twinkie snack
C)chewing tobacco
D)tap water from most cities in the United States
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Page 19
Chapter 18: Global Climate Change
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Sample Questions
Q1) An ethical response to growing concern about climate change might be found by applying
A)cost-benefit analysis.
B)the Precautionary Principle as articulated in the 1992 Rio Conference.
C)forgiveness to climate scientists who have deliberately falsified data.
D)the principle of Economic Might Makes Right.
Q2) Which one of the following has been declining globally over the past several decades?
A)nitrous oxide levels in the troposphere
B)methane levels in the troposphere
C)mean global temperature
D)pH of the world's oceans
Q3) Which of the following activities have contributed the greatest amount of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere over the past 100 years?
A)increased farming and production of grains
B)increased reliance upon coal,oil,and natural gas
C)deforestation of rain forests and other parts of the world
D)volcanic eruptions and widespread forest fires
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Chapter 19: Atmospheric Pollution
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following is a natural soil buffer that is abundant in the midwestern United States and helps to reduce the amount of acidification of lakes in that region?
A)granite
B)limestone
C)sand and gravel
D)mosses and algae in the soil
Q2) Which of the following components of the atmosphere are most helpful in the cleansing of the air?
A)hydroxyl radicals
B)ozone
C)radon
D)sulfur dioxide
Q3) Which of the following is an anthropogenic source of acid deposition?
A)sea spray
B)volcanic eruptions
C)extensive natural forest fires
D)gasoline engine emissions from automobiles
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21
Chapter 20: Water Pollution and Its Prevention
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Sample Questions
Q1) Eutrophication of Lake Washington near Seattle was largely addressed by limiting levels of
A)phosphate from nonpoint source discharges of pollution.
B)phosphate from point source discharges of pollution.
C)nitrates from nonpoint source discharges of pollution.
D)nitrates from point source discharges of pollution.
Q2) The objective of biological nutrient removal is to
A)reduce cultural eutrophication.
B)increase the BOD of the wastewater discharge into freshwater systems.
C)eliminate living bacteria in the wastewater discharge.
D)reduce the amount of grit and debris in wastewater.
Q3) Adding fertilizer to most aquatic systems results in
A)increased growth of phytoplankton and hypoxic conditions.
B)increased growth of phytoplankton and hyperoxic conditions.
C)decreased growth of phytoplankton and hypoxic conditions.
D)decreased growth of phytoplankton and hyperoxic conditions.
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22
Chapter 21: Municipal Solid Waste: Disposal and Recovery
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Sample Questions
Q1) Lining a landfill with a thick tough plastic barrier is a good way to address problems related to
A)methane production.
B)settling.
C)incomplete decomposition.
D)groundwater contamination.
Q2) In general,recycling materials found in MSW
A)uses more natural resources but decreases pollution and saves energy.
B)uses more natural resources,increases pollution,but saves energy.
C)conserves natural resources,decreases pollution,but uses more energy.
D)conserves natural resources,decreases pollution,and saves energy.
Q3) Which of the following demonstrates the greatest stewardship in addressing the production and disposal of MSW?
A)promote strategies that reduce the generation of MSW
B)compost organic components of MSW
C)recycle MSW as much as possible
D)promote strategies that reduce MSW,compost organic components,and recycle as much MSW as possible
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Chapter 22: Hazardous Chemicals: Pollution and Prevention
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Sample Questions
Q1) In general,since its creation in 1980,the Superfund cleanup program has resulted in
A)fewer than 10 sites receiving all the necessary cleanup.
B)only about 100 sites receiving all the necessary cleanup.
C)about a thousand sites receiving all the necessary cleanup.
D)the necessary cleanup of more than 99% of all Superfund sites.
Q2) Which one of the following hazardous-waste disposal methods is safest with regard to ground/drinking water pollution and involvement in ecosystem food chains?
A)a secure landfill
B)a deep-well injection
C)an on-site surface impoundment
D)a best-demonstrated available technology
Q3) The movie,A Civil Action,told the story of the
A)cleanup of a Superfund site in Massachusetts.
B)first Superfund site ever completely cleaned up.
C)first cleanup using a combination of phytoremediation and incineration.
D)first time that a company agreed to pay for the cleanup of a Superfund site.
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Chapter 23: Sustainable Communities and Lifestyles
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Sample Questions
Q1) The lessons of the people of Easter Island best reveal the need for
A)sustainable development.
B)sound science.
C)social justice.
D)political action.
Q2) The transportation within the Atlanta BeltLine will
A)focus on accommodating cars and parking.
B)eliminate all transportation except pedestrian traffic.
C)include pedestrian-friendly rail-based transit.
D)take public parks and convert them into low-cost parking structures.
Q3) In general,commuting to work after WWII was more common because of
A)increased automobile ownership and the Highway Trust Fund.
B)the elimination of most forms of public transportation in cities.
C)increases in the populations of most cities.
D)the widespread and rapid construction of light rail systems out to suburbs.
Q4) According to the U.S.Sprawlometer,the most sprawling and congested area is A)New York.
B)Los Angeles.
C)Greensboro,NC.
D)Riverside,CA.
Page 25
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