Deck 16: Hazardous Wastes

Question 1

All US companies dispose of their chemical wastes responsibly.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

A major source of hazardous wastes is the production and distribution of

A)pesticides
B)detergents
C)polyester fabric
D)cosmetics

Answer 2

A

Question 3

Burying hazardous wastes requires

A)a deep well
B)bacteria to remediate the material
C)a secure landfill
D)a sandy desert

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Corrosivity refers to the

A)toxicity of a material
B)ability of a material to cause a fire during routine handling
C)ability of a material to react with and break down a metal
D)high vapor pressure of a substance

Question 5

Hazardous wastes are defined by

A)the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) of 1976
B)the Paris Accord
C)the Kyoto Treaty
D)the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA)

Question 6

Hazardous waste treatment (to make it safe for disposal) can be accomplished by

A)physical treatment such as trapping inside a vat of molten glass
B)chemical treatment to transform it to something safer and/or incineration
C)biological treatment (bioremediation with bacteria)
D)all of these

Question 7

In 1980 Congress passed the Superfund Act or Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) which dealt with

A)the outlawing of manufacture of hazardous substances
B)an advertising campaign to discourage use of hazardous substances
C)cleanup of dangerous hazardous waste sites
D)a publicity effort to encourage citizens to use hazardous substances responsibly

Question 8

Individuals in the US really have very little control over their generation and disposal of hazardous household waste.

Question 9

Most American homes contain few if any hazardous chemicals.

Question 10

Nuclear wastes generated by the defense sector are disposed of in Carlsbad, New Mexico,

A)according to municipal policies
B)according to county policies
C)according to state policies
D)independent of civilian rules and regulations

Question 11

Hazardous wastes are sometimes exported from the US to other countries because

A)the countries will accept the wastes in exchange for hard currency
B)the countries can use the materials for their military program
C)the citizens can use the materials for recycling
D)it is not necessary to notify the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of this, nor to file annual reports

Question 12

The field of Chemistry that attempts to find environmentally less dangerous chemical manufacturing procedures is called

A)organic manufacturing
B)natural processing
C)green chemistry
D)biophysical chemistry

Question 13

The four categories of low-level nuclear waste (LLW) are A, B, C, and greater-than-C.Arrange these in order of increasing danger with the most dangerous last.

A)A > B > C > greater-than-C
B)C > A > B > greater-than-C
C)greater-than-C > C > B > A
D)They are equally dangerous.

Question 14

The hazardous waste event that catapulted the American government into action was

A)the burning of the Cuyahoga River in Ohio
B)the death of 26 citizens from smog in Donora, Pennsylvania
C)Love Canal in Niagara Falls, N.Y.
D)None of these.The American government has been proactive in predicting the possibility of such disasters and preventing them.

Question 15

The most effective choice for hazardous waste treatment and disposal is

A)physical treatment to trap it inside cement, glass, etc.
B)bioremediation with bacteria to handle the conversion
C)incineration
D)addition of another chemical to react with the hazardous waste and make it safer

Question 16

The National Priorities List (NPL) is a list of

A)national parks where hazardous waste dumping is prohibited
B)hazardous waste sites to be cleaned up
C)municipal (city or town) waste sites governed independently
D)offshore locations where hazardous waste dumping is prohibited

Question 17

The need to dispose of large amounts of radioactive waste in the US emerged

A)after World War I
B)after World War II
C)after the Gulf War
D)about 1869, when Mendeleev discovered the Periodic Table

Question 18

The nuclear waste disposal rooms in Carlsbad, New Mexico, are cut into a 2000-foot thick layer of

A)igneous rock
B)limestone
C)salt
D)steel

Question 19

The nuclear waste disposal rooms in Carlsbad, New Mexico, are

A)2 feet below the surface
B)20 feet below the surface
C)215 feet below the surface
D)2150 feet below the surface

Question 20

The production of hazardous wastes is largely a consequence of the

A)American Revolution
B)Industrial Revolution
C)Renaissance
D)War of 1812

Question 21

The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) of 1976

A)prohibits improper disposal of hazardous household waste
B)requires training of householders as to the nature of hazardous waste
C)prohibits purchase of hazardous household chemicals by minors
D)exempts hazardous household chemicals from its requirements

Question 22

The two main categories of radioactive waste are

A)safe and unsafe
B)high-level (HLW) and low-level (LLW)
C)medical and industrial
D)domestic and international

Question 23

With the passage of the Resource Consecration and Recovery Act (RCRA) of 1976, improper disposal of hazardous material became a

A)matter for municipalities (town and cities) to handle
B)matter for states to handle
C)federal crime in the US
D)none of these - it was merely a suggestion.