Deck 19: Environmental Regulation

Question 1

Scoping encourages impact statements to focus on more substantial environmental concerns and reduce the attention devoted to trivial issues.

Answer 1

True
Explanation: Scoping requires that even before preparing an environmental impact statement (EIS), agencies must designate which environmental issues of a contemplated action are most significant. It encourages impact statements to focus on more substantial environmental concerns and reduce the attention devoted to trivial issues.

Question 2

To be considered a point source under the Clean Water Act,the source must itself create pollution.

Answer 2

False
Explanation: The Supreme Court determined in South Florida Water Management District v. Miccosukee Tribe of Indians (2004) that a point source did not itself have to generate pollution. It could be merely a pumping station that moved pollution from one site to another.

Question 3

Under the Solid Waste Disposal Act,the main responsibility for nontoxic waste management rests with federal management.

Answer 3

False
Explanation: Congress recognized in the Solid Waste Disposal Act that the main responsibility for nontoxic waste management rests with regional, state, and local management and limited the federal role in this area. Under this act, the federal role in nontoxic waste management is limited mainly to promoting research and providing technical and financial assistance to the states.

Question 4

The Endangered Species Act requires courts and regulators to take economic factors into consideration in applying the Act's provisions.

Question 5

Enforcement of the Clean Water Act revolves around its permit discharge system.

Question 6

The U.S.federal government is the largest landholder in the country,controlling one-third of the nation's land.

Question 7

U.S.pesticide companies can sell internationally what they cannot sell in the United States.

Question 8

States bear principal responsibility for devising implementation plans regarding the Clean Air Act.

Question 9

The prevention of significant deterioration policy is criticized on the grounds that it prevents industry from moving into southern and western states where air quality is cleaner than standards require.

Question 10

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)regulates indoor air pollution under the Clean Air Act.

Question 11

All new pollution-control rules are now subject to a cost-benefit analysis.

Question 12

Landfills are not preferred as disposal sites for business solid waste due to the excessive amount of waste.

Question 13

State environmental impact statements have been more successful than their federal counterparts in evaluating complex environmental factors.

Question 14

The Clean Air Act unambiguously bars cost considerations from the air quality standards-setting process.

Question 15

Primary air quality standards are standards that are necessary to protect public health.

Question 16

Unlike the Clean Air Act,the Clean Water Act is administered primarily by the federal government.

Question 17

The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)has made it mandatory for federal agencies to follow the conclusions of an environmental impact statement (EIS).

Question 18

Congress has established a review board that grants exemptions to the Endangered Species Act (ESA)for private activities.

Question 19

The Endangered Species Act extends its protection to "threatened" species too.

Question 20

The bubble concept reduces the flexibility in curtailing pollution and restricts businesses to discover new methods of controls.

Question 21

Ozone depleting chlorofluorocarbons and halons are no longer in production.

Question 22

An environmental impact statement

A) must include available alternatives to the proposed action.
B) must include economic profits that can be guaranteed from the organization's action.
C) must include a statement of any reversible use of resources.
D) must include technical jargon for better understanding of the statement.
E) must be included in most recommendations or reports on proposals for legislation affecting the environment.

Question 23

The destruction of the world's rainforests is occurring primarily on privately owned land as it is more difficult to enforce the laws in private property ownership cases.

Question 24

Banks that hold a mortgage on land that turns out to have a toxic waste site subject to the Superfund rules are liable for the cleanup.

Question 25

Which of the following statements is true of the National Environmental Policy Act?

A) It establishes a single piece of legislation that comprehensively controls radiation pollution.
B) It imposes specific duties on all state agencies, but not on federal agencies.
C) It ensures that the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act do not contain provisions related to government suits to recover costs for the cleanup of toxic chemicals.
D) It promotes the understanding of the ecological systems important to the United States.
E) It demands that all state agencies prepare an environmental impact statement prior to taking certain actions.

Question 26

The Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)demands that the Environmental Protection Agency be given advance notice before the manufacture of new chemical substances or the processing of any substance for a significant new use.

Question 27

The National Academy of Sciences notes that global carbon dioxide levels have decreased rapidly since 1960.

Question 28

In cases of strict liability tort,finding of fault or failure of reasonable care on the defendant's part is necessary.

Question 29

High-income countries use four to five times as much energy (mostly from polluting fossil fuels like coal and oil)as developing countries.

Question 30

The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act accomplishes proper hazardous waste disposal through the manifest system.

Question 31

The emissions trading approach to pollution management is a property approach.

Question 32

Machinery used in solid waste disposal is exempt from the regulation of the Noise Control Act.

Question 33

Environmental impact statements became a requirement based on the

A) National Environmental Policy Act.
B) Department of the Environment Act.
C) Clean Water Act.
D) Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act.
E) Waste and Resource Reclamation Act.

Question 34

Environmental laws at the federal level are administered by the

A) Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
B) Pollution Control Board.
C) Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).
D) Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
E) World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED).

Question 35

It is beyond the rights or authority of shareholders to file global warming-related resolutions directing board members or officers to analyze and/or report on environmental issues.

Question 36

Airborne particles that fall on a plaintiff's property can constitute a trespass.

Question 37

The Toxic Substances Control Act is like the Clean Air Act,which requires that certain pollution standards be met without regard for economic factors.

Question 38

Under the Kyoto Protocol,industrialized nations are supposed to lower greenhouse gas emission below 1990 levels.

Question 39

Environmental impact study scoping refers to

A) designating specific geographic areas that a contemplated action will affect.
B) estimating the specific population that a contemplated action will affect.
C) designating which environmental issues of a contemplated action are most significant.
D) specifying a backup plan should a contemplated action cause unforeseeable damage.
E) preparing informal impact statements that will address environmental issues regarded as most important.

Question 40

Which of the following statements is true of an environmental impact statement (EIS)?

A) The National Environmental Policy Act requires federal agencies to follow the conclusions of the EIS.
B) An EIS can be in any language as long as it is clear and to the point.
C) An EIS is to be included in every recommendation or report on proposals for legislation and other major federal actions significantly affecting the quality of the human environment.
D) An EIS should include technical jargon to clearly explain all the points mentioned in the statement.
E) The EIS is usually a short list of points that hints at the pros of the economic profits that are outcomes of transactions concerning the human environment.

Question 41

Which of the following statements is true of the Clean Water Act?

A) It sets goals and timetables to eliminate water pollution.
B) It directs the Environmental Protection Agency to set maximum drinking water contaminant levels.
C) It mandates permits to discharge pollutants from non-point source.
D) It mandates permits for industrial, but exempts municipal, dischargers.
E) It regulates non-point source pollution.

Question 42

Under the 1990 Clean Air Act amendments,Congress specifically allows utility companies to

A) engage in emissions reduction banking and trading.
B) indulge in cap and trade.
C) use marketable rights to pollution control.
D) avoid cost-benefit analysis in its approach to pollution control.
E) focus on secondary air quality standards rather than primary air quality standards.

Question 43

Which of the following statements is true of the Clean Air Act?

A) As per the act, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sets national ambient air quality standards and the states devise implementation plans.
B) Criminal sanctions for violation of the act by individuals result in a fine of up to $1,000,000 or life imprisonment.
C) The principal responsibility for enforcing the act lies with the individuals and nongovernmental organizations.
D) The scope of the act limits it from setting any secondary air quality standards.
E) The state is given complete control over formulation and implementation of plans under the Clean Air Act.

Question 44

For control purposes,the Clean Air Act amendments divide air pollution into the categories of ______ sources.

A) suburban and rural
B) stationary and mobile
C) commercial and residential
D) urban and industrial
E) organic and inorganic

Question 45

Under the Clean Air Act,corporations can be fined up to ______ for knowingly endangering people with emissions.

A) $1 million
B) $25 million
C) $10 million
D) $1 billion
E) $5 million

Question 46

Under the Clean Water Act,the first step in cleanup of industrial wastes requires polluters to install ______.

A) best practicable technology
B) scrubbers
C) best available technology
D) electromagnetic precipitators
E) wet collectors

Question 47

Which of the following is a control device that stationary source polluters may utilize to achieve design standards?

A) catalytic converters
B) short stacks
C) water jets
D) steel utilities
E) scrubbers

Question 48

Under the ______ approach,businesses can cut pollution beyond what the law requires and keep these reductions for their own future use or to sell to other companies as emission offsets.

A) cap and trade
B) bubble concept
C) emissions reduction banking
D) point-source
E) marketable rights

Question 49

Under the ______,the pollution of the plant complex as a whole is the focus of regulation.

A) scoping concept
B) novation concept
C) line source concept
D) point source concept
E) bubble concept

Question 50

Thermal effluents consist of

A) heated air discharged into the atmosphere.
B) heated water discharged into rivers and lakes.
C) warm water tides that affect the weather.
D) solid waste that produces heat creating landfill-related pollution.
E) heated pollutants released from gas chambers to the atmosphere.

Question 51

The ______ approach to pollution control refers to a situation where the government issues a limited number of pollution permits,and companies,which can reduce emissions,can sell the unused amount of a permit.

A) marketable rights
B) point source
C) cap and trade
D) emissions reduction banking
E) bubble concept

Question 52

Which of the following acts administered by the Environmental Protection Agency requires a permit system for the discharge or dumping of various materials into the seas?

A) the Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act of 1972
B) the Safe Drinking Water Act of 1974
C) the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act
D) the Toxic Substances Control Act
E) the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act

Question 53

The director of Homeland Security has exercised authority to create an exception to the National Environmental Policy Act requirements to allow the

A) creation of a single piece of legislation that comprehensively controls radiation pollution.
B) suspension of the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act restrictions in and around domestic military bases.
C) suspension of the Endangered Species Act restrictions when animal and plant life is affected during necessary military training maneuvers.
D) building of a fence between the United States and Mexico.
E) building of nuclear power plants around protected areas of the United States.

Question 54

Which of the following statements is true of the Clean Water Act?

A) It was passed in accordance with the Toxic Substances Control Act in the year 1975.
B) It is beyond the scope of the act to set laws pertaining to the recreational use of waterways.
C) It applies to both navigable interstate and intrastate waterways.
D) The criminal penalties of the act cover any unpermitted point-source pollution of navigable waterways.
E) The penalties under the act are predominantly insubstantial.

Question 55

Clean air standards designed to protect against air pollution effects such as injury to property,vegetation,and climate are called

A) primary air quality standards.
B) secondary air quality standards.
C) principal air quality standards.
D) tertiary air quality standards.
E) premium air quality standards.

Question 56

Which of the following statements is true of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)?

A) It establishes a single piece of legislation that comprehensively controls radiation pollution.
B) It coordinates public control of private action at the federal level.
C) It is usually beyond its scope to administer federal laws.
D) It administers local laws relating to the sale of medicines and drugs at lower rates.
E) It demands that all state agencies prepare an environmental impact statement prior to taking certain actions.

Question 57

The ______ approach refers to pollution control system under which the right to discharge a certain pollutant would be auctioned off to the highest bidder.

A) point-source
B) bubble concept
C) cap and trade
D) novation
E) marketable rights

Question 58

Under the ______ issued by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA),polluters can engage in a family of alternative operating scenarios without the expensive delay of obtaining new permits per the previous EPA requirements.

A) emissions reduction banking credits
B) marketable rights
C) remediation
D) superfunds
E) smart permits

Question 59

The estimated time needed to acquire the necessary permits to build a coal-fired electric generating plant is

A) one to two years.
B) six to nine months.
C) five to ten years.
D) three to four years.
E) two to three years.

Question 60

Traditionally,under the Environmental Protection Agency,the ______ is described as a specific site of pollution,such as a smokestack.

A) emissions reduction bank
B) urban runoff
C) line source
D) point source
E) bubble concept

Question 61

Which of the following statements is true of tort laws?

A) The defendant is usually liable for trespass if he enters the land unintentionally.
B) The basis for the negligence tort lies in the plaintiff's ability to use reasonable care in his duty to reduce injury to himself.
C) The defendant's failure of reasonable care is unnecessary in the tort of strict liability.
D) The damages caused as a consequence of public nuisance can be brought forward by any private or public official regardless of the special damages suffered by them.
E) The tort of strict liability is used in cases which involves storage and use of explosives.

Question 62

Which of the following statements is true of the Federal Insecticide,Fungicide,and Rodenticide Act?

A) It requires the registration and labeling of agricultural pesticides.
B) It requires the licensing of operators using pesticides.
C) It prohibits the use of pesticides near schools.
D) It takes into account the economic and environmental costs and benefits of the use of any pesticide, but neglects the social impact.
E) It applies to pesticides that U.S. manufacturers ship to foreign countries.

Question 63

The primary purpose of the Toxic Substances Control Act is to

A) force an early evaluation of suspect chemicals before they become economically important.
B) slow down the introduction of new chemicals to encourage the use of already established chemicals.
C) prevent the shipment of unsafe chemicals to foreign countries.
D) create an organic environment for agriculture.
E) identify water bodies for the safe disposal of toxic materials.

Question 64

Which of the following statements is true of the Comprehensive Environmental Response,Compensation,and Liability Act?

A) It levies punitive damages up to five times of the cleanup costs.
B) It mandates notification for authorized release of hazardous substances.
C) It imposes strict liability on those responsible for unauthorized discharges of hazardous wastes.
D) It supersedes international pollution control laws.
E) It provides a statement of revenues generated from organizations making healthy use of natural resources.

Question 65

Under the Superfund,the costs for restoring land to its previous condition is called ______.

A) reformation
B) remediation
C) rehabilitation
D) reconstruction
E) reclamation

Question 66

Which of the following statements is true of private citizens?

A) They can report violations of environmental law to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), but cannot act directly.
B) They cannot sue polluters directly to force them to cease violating environmental laws.
C) They can sue public agencies, like the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), to force the adoption of regulations.
D) They can sue businesses, but not the government, to enforce rules under environmental statutes like the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act.
E) They cannot sue offending polluters under tort theories of strict liability and negligence as these theories are not established.

Question 67

Which of the following statements holds true for the manifest system of hazardous waste disposal?

A) It assesses penalties for failure to comply with the provisions of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA).
B) It refers to the software packages used for aggregating data for optimization of operations for waste collection.
C) It prescribes various record-keeping requirements that manifest waste disposal.
D) It obligates the generator to determine whether its wastes qualify as hazardous under the manifest system.
E) It requires the generator to prepare a manifest document that designates a licensed facility for disposal purposes.

Question 68

Which of the following statements is true of the Endangered Species Act (ESA)?

A) The act was passed in the year 1952 under the guidelines given by the panel on the Council on Environmental Quality.
B) The act has its scope limited to private businesses.
C) The act permits courts or regulators to take economic factors into consideration in applying its provisions.
D) The act requires recovery plans for the species it protects.
E) The act provides for exemptions that are applicable to private activities for certain important federal projects.

Question 69

If a bank assumes ownership of a piece of contaminated land

A) the previous owner will be solely responsible for the cleanup.
B) the bank can re-sell the property without any liability for cleanup.
C) the bank becomes a responsible party.
D) the bank is withheld from selling the land due to its contaminated status.
E) the future owner will be solely responsible for the cleanup upon its sale to the future owner.

Question 70

Which of the following statements is true of the problem of solid wastes?

A) The Clean Air Act is inapplicable in cases where solid wastes have been burned.
B) Solid waste pollution problems have decreased during the last 25 years.
C) Half of all solid waste produced in U.S is agricultural waste.
D) Residential waste is the highest contributor of solid wastes in U.S.
E) Landfills are the least used sites for most household and business solid wastes.

Question 71

The primary federal effort in solid waste management is represented by the ______.

A) Waste and Resource Reclamation Act
B) Solid Waste Disposal Act
C) Landfill Management Act
D) National Environmental Policy Act
E) National Solid Waste Management Act

Question 72

______ refers to an act that causes inconvenience or damage to the public in the exercise of rights common to everyone.

A) Direct interference
B) Negligence
C) Trespassing
D) Due diligence
E) Public nuisance

Question 73

Under the Endangered Species Act,the right to declare a species as endangered rests with the

A) director of the Environmental Protection Agency.
B) governors of states where the species habitat is located.
C) Secretary of the Interior.
D) president.
E) upper house of the U.S Congress.

Question 74

Opinion research indicates that the public's highest concern regarding regulation of industry is

A) expansion of industry into protected areas.
B) control of toxic and hazardous chemicals.
C) movement of industry to less-regulated countries.
D) land encroachment in national parks.
E) the transfer of toxic materials to developing countries.

Question 75

Which of the following statements is true of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)?

A) The RCRA accomplishes proper disposal of hazardous wastes through the point-source system.
B) The RCRA moves the handling of toxic wastes away from burial on land to treatments that destroy or permanently detoxify wastes.
C) The RCRA is exempted from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from maintaining any records or a penalty system for failure to comply with the provisions of the act.
D) The RCRA was created primarily to provide financial assistance to local governments.
E) The RCRA lacks investigatory powers but maintains executory powers.

Question 76

Under the Solid Waste Disposal Act,the federal role in nontoxic waste management is to

A) provide strict guidelines to landfill composition.
B) promote research and provide technical and financial assistance to the states.
C) waive standards regarding other pollution that arises as a result of solid waste management.
D) grant tax breaks for industries using recycled materials.
E) provide for the storage, transfer, and disposal of non-toxic waste material.

Question 77

Which of the following statements is true of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)?

A) The primary purpose of the TSCA is to provide technical and financial assistance to all states in implementation of the Act.
B) The TSCA is like the Clean Air Act which requires that certain pollution standards be met without regard for economic factors.
C) The law authorizes the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to require manufacturers to test their chemicals for possible harmful effects.
D) The TSCA demands that the EPA is not given advance notice of manufacture of new chemicals.
E) The TSCA was passed in the year 1950 with the guidelines given by the Federal Environmental Pesticide Control Act.

Question 78

For the Department of Interior,the Endangered Species Act is administered by the

A) Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act of 1947.
B) Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
C) Toxic Substances Control Act.
D) Federal Environmental Pesticide Control Act of 1972 (FEPCA).
E) Fish and Wildlife Services and the National Marine Fisheries Services.

Question 79

Under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act,a generator of wastes is obligated to

A) provide on-site disposal of the waste.
B) determine if a nonlisted waste is hazardous in terms of the chemical characteristics specified by the Solid Waste Disposal Act.
C) determine whether its wastes qualify as hazardous.
D) reduce production of new chemicals.
E) pay punitive and speculative damages to the aggrieved party.

Question 80

Under the Superfund law,a purchaser of land may escape the liability to clean up hazardous wastes by

A) fixing responsibility on the previous owner of the land.
B) suing the land seller for the hazardous wastes left by the seller.
C) informing the government of any hazardous wastes in the land.
D) pleading ignorance to the knowledge of the act.
E) proving the use of due diligence in checking the land for toxic hazards.