Deck 1: Environmental Problems, Their Causes, and Sustainability

Question 1

Select the choice that correctly states the best priority for use of non-renewable resources, such as metals and plastics, from the environmentally sustainable perspective.

A) recycle, reuse, reduce
B) reuse, reduce, recycle
C) reduce, reuse, recycle
D) reduce, recycle, refuse
E) repurpose, recycle, remake

Answer 1

reduce, reuse, recycle

Question 2

Nutrient recycling is a vital natural service carried out by which natural resource?

A) natural gas
B) clean air
C) Topsoil
D) grazing animals such as deer
E) two of these answers

Answer 2

Topsoil

Question 3

Which of the following best describes the areas of study that are important in the discipline of environmental science?

A) Biology.
B) Chemistry and geology
C) Economics and biology
D) Economics and chemistry
E) Biology, chemistry, geology and economics

Answer 3

Biology, chemistry, geology and economics

Question 4

When we speak of protecting the environment, we are referring to

A) all living things on the planet
B) all non-living things such as air, fresh water, and energy
C) all living and non-living things
D) humans and the living and non-living things that affect them only
E) humans and the living things that affect them only

Question 5

Which of the following statements about developing countries is true?

A) They are highly industrialized.
B) They have high-average per capita income.
C) They include the United States, Germany, and Japan.
D) They are classified as middle-income or low-income.
E) They have about 85% of the world's wealth and income.

Question 6

What is an essential characteristic that indicates whether a resource should be categorized as a renewable resource?

A) It must be an energy resource.
B) It must be a biological resource.
C) It must be recyclable.
D) It must have the capacity to be replenished within days to several hundred years.
E) It must have the capacity to be utilized for immediate economic benefit.

Question 7

Which of the following is best categorized as an example of a natural service?

A) renewable energy
B) nonrenewable energy
C) water purification
D) Oil
E) Soil

Question 8

One of the reasons biodiversity is such an important aspect of sustainability is the fact that

A) cycling chemicals maintains a ready supply of new materials for water, soil and food
B) it is the ultimate source of energy for plants
C) interactions among species provide population controls that limits ultimate population sizes of many species
D) it provides water purification and topsoil renewable
E) two of these answers are correct

Question 9

Which of the following is an example of recycling?

A) collecting and remelting aluminum beer cans and making them into new cans
B) cleaning and refilling soft-drink bottles
C) selling used clothing at a garage sale
D) saving leftovers in a peanut butter jar
E) using household water to water a garden

Question 10

Which of the following is a form of natural capital gained directly or indirectly as a result of solar energy?

A) Forests
B) flowing water and wind energy
C) wind energy only
D) coal and oil
E) forests, flowing water, wind energy, coal and oil.

Question 11

Which of the following is a social movement dedicated to the protection of the Earth's natural capital?

A) Ecology
B) environmental science
C) Environmentalism
D) natural science
E) Sustainability

Question 12

Which of the following would best be categorized as a perpetual resource?

A) oil reserves
B) Fisheries
C) solar energy
D) Forests
E) coal reserves

Question 13

You have decided to install solar collectors on the roof of your home that will cut your use of propane gas to heat both your hot water tank and the living spaces in your home. In doing so, you are using a ______________resource rather than a ______________resource.

A) renewable; nonrenewable
B) perpetual; renewable
C) renewable; perpetual
D) nonrenewable; renewable
E) perpetual; nonrenewable

Question 14

Developed countries

A) are high-income
B) are low-income
C) use about 88% of the world's resources
D) make up about 80% of the world's population
E) Are high-income and use about 88% of the worlds resources

Question 15

About ____ of the world's human population lives in the developing countries.

A) 20%
B) 40%
C) 60%
D) 80%
E) 90%

Question 16

The three principles of sustainability are:

A) solar energy, biodiversity and perpetual energy
B) use of natural capital to support human economies
C) use of renewable resources, but no use of nonrenewable resources
D) solar energy, biodiversity and chemical cycling
E) biodiversity, use of perpetual resources and widespread reduction of use

Question 17

Which of the following is a goal of environmental science?

A) Learn how life on earth has thrived and survived..
B) Understand how we interact with the environment.
C) Live more sustainably and find ways to deal with environmental problems.
D) Learn how life on earth has thrived and survived and understand how we interact with the environment.
E) Learn how life on earth has thrived and survived, understand how we interact with the environment, and live more sustainably and find ways to deal with environmental problems.

Question 18

A group of organisms with a unique set of characteristics that distinguishes them from other organisms, is called a

A) Species
B) Ecosystem
C) sustainable society
D) natural resource
E) Population

Question 19

Which of the following terms encompasses all of the others?

A) natural capital
B) natural resources
C) natural services
D) renewable resources
E) nonrenewable resources

Question 20

A fictional vision of a more environmentally healthy planet in the future uses which of the following fuels and renewable energy resources?

A) underground heat only
B) algae only
C) sun and wind only
D) flowing water only
E) underground heat, algae, sun and wind and flowing water

Question 21

Which of the following is an environmental benefit of affluence and wealth?

A) Increasing wealth allows for an increased capacity for resource consumption.
B) Increased wealth provides resources to apply toward the creation of environmentally beneficial technologies.
C) Increasing affluence often leads to a desire to travel widely and frequently in order to see the world.
D) The affluence of developed nations is highly desirable and sought after by citizens of developing nations.
E) The typical consumption patterns of affluent nations leads to beneficial environmental conservation practices.

Question 22

The resource consumption of the average person in the United States is about _____ times that of the average citizen of India, and about _____ times that of the average person in the world's poorest countries.

A) 2, 10
B) 5, 10
C) 8.6, 15
D) 25, 50
E) 30, 100

Question 23

Which of the following is a major factor contributing to the degradation of natural capital associated with the pricing of consumable goods?

A) They are priced in such a way that they do not reflect the environmental damage caused by their production.
B) They are priced in such a way as to allow even those in poverty in developing nations to acquire them.
C) They are priced in such a way that only the most affluent purchaser is able to acquire them.
D) Consumers are typically aware of the kinds of environmental damage resulting from the production of the item.
E) It is fashionable in some local cultures to purchase items that are expensive because of the social status it brings.

Question 24

Nonpoint sources of pollution

A) enter ecosystems from single identifiable sources
B) are more difficult to control than point sources
C) include smokestacks and automobile exhaust pipes
D) are cheaper and easier to identify than point sources
E) are always found in rural areas

Question 25

A worldview that holds that we can and should manage the Earth for our own benefit but that we also have an ethical responsibility to be caring stewards is called the

A) planetary management worldview
B) stewardship worldview
C) environmental wisdom worldview
D) socialist worldview
E) monarchy worldview

Question 26

The IPAT model states that the key factor in environmental impact in

A) developing countries is resource use
B) developing countries is population size
C) developed countries is resource use
D) developed countries is population size
E) more than one of these answers

Question 27

Root causes of unsustainability include all of the following except

A) wasteful use of resources
B) Poverty
C) rapid population growth
D) inclusion of environmental and social costs in market prices
E) widespread recycling programs

Question 28

Nonrenewable resources include

A) Oil
B) Minerals
C) salt and sand
D) Coal
E) oil, minerals, salt, sand and coal

Question 29

Point sources of pollution

A) enter ecosystems from dispersed and often hard-to-identify sources
B) include runoff of fertilizers and pesticides from farmlands and suburban lawns
C) are cheaper and easier to identify than nonpoint sources
D) are more difficult to control than nonpoint sources
E) are always found in rural areas

Question 30

China currently

A) has the second largest economy on the planet
B) is the world's largest producer of wind turbines, and is projected to soon be the largest producer of solar cells
C) is the second largest economy on the planet and is the world's largest producer and consumer of cars.
D) is the world's largest producer and consumer of cars, and is the largest producer of solar cells.
E) is the second largest economy on the planet, is the world's largest producer of wind turbines and cars, and is is projected to soon be the world's largest producer of solar cells.

Question 31

Which of the following best describes the concept of environmental degradation?

A) using solar power at a rapid rate
B) growing crops for food
C) cutting trees for wood products faster than the trees can regrow to maturity
D) letting agricultural runoff cause oxygen depletion and fish kills downstream
E) two of these answers

Question 32

All of the following are potentially renewable resources except

A) Groundwater
B) trees in a forest
C) fertile soil
D) Oil
E) fish populations

Question 33

You generally buy and eat microwave dinners. After dinner, cardboard tops and plastic trays remain. The least effective way to deal with this type of solid waste problem is to

A) Store leftovers in the plastic trays.
B) Put all of the solid waste in the household trash to be taken to the landfill.
C) Donate the plastic containers to the local nursery schools to use with preschoolers.
D) Recycle the components.
E) Save the containers in a stash in your garage for future use.

Question 34

The total ecological footprint for humanity is expected to be

A) twice the planet's ecological capacity by the year 2015
B) 30% higher than the planet's ecological capacity by the year 2035
C) 60% higher than the planet's ecological capacity by the year 2035
D) 30% higher than the planet's ecological capacity by the year 2015
E) twice the planet's ecological capacity by the year 2035

Question 35

The tragedy of the commons refers to

A) overuse of privately held resources
B) overuse of shared common resources
C) human deaths from polluted shared resources such as air or water
D) government over-regulation of fresh water use
E) a Shakespeare play

Question 36

Evidence that we are living unsustainably includes which of the following?

A) Renewable forests are shrinking.
B) Topsoil is eroding, and the lower atmosphere is warming.
C) Deserts are expanding.
D) Deserts are shrinking.
E) Deserts are expanding, renewable forests are shrinking, topsoil is eroding and the lower atmosphere is warming.

Question 37

Sustainable yield is the highest rate at which we can use a(n) _____________without reducing its available supply.

A) renewable resource
B) perpetual resource
C) energy resource
D) mineral resource
E) nonrenewable resource

Question 38

Which of the following best describes what is meant by an ecological footprint?

A) It is the average size of the lot on which a family home is built.
B) It is the number of acres necessary to grow enough food to support a family.
C) It is the geographic area in which a person travels during the course of their average daily activities.
D) It is the amount of biologically-productive land and water needed to supply the people in a particular country or area with the resources they need.
E) It is the amount of tillable agricultural land necessary to supply the food requirements of a nation.

Question 39

Pollution cleanup efforts can be ineffective because

A) They often transfer pollutants from one part of the environment to another.
B) Once pollutants are dispersed, it costs too much to reduce them to acceptable levels.
C) They can be overwhelmed by growth in population and consumption.
D) They often transfer pollutants from part of the environment to another, once they are dispersed it costs too much to reduce them to acceptable levels, and they can be overwhelmed by growth in population and consumption.
E) There are not enough people with the necessary technical training to deal with the problems.

Question 40

If a country's ecological footprint is larger than its biological capacity to replenish its renewable resources and absorb the resulting waste and pollution:

A) It is said to have an ecological deficit.
B) It should be supported by other countries with smaller footprints.
C) It is said to be a sustainable society.
D) It is most likely a developing country.
E) More than one of these answers is correct.

Question 41

Rapid population growth and associated poverty are primarily occurring in developing countries and have little impact on environmental degradation.

Question 42

With respect to making a shift from unsustainable lifestyles to sustainable lifestyles, it is estimated that we have about _____________years to accomplish this, but that it takes about _______________per cent of the population to bring about such major social changes.

A) 50 to 100; 50 to 100
B) 100 to 1,000; 5 to 10
C) 50 to 100; 5 to 10
D) 5 to 10; 50 to 100
E) 75; 75

Question 43

In an environmentally sustainable society, most affluent citizens work to decrease their consumption of products.

Question 44

Recycling nonrenewable metallic resources takes much less energy, water, and other resources and produces less pollution and environmental degradation than exploiting virgin metallic resources.

Question 45

In order for the social changes to occur that will produce sustainable economies, fully 50% of the population of a country must support the change.

Question 46

The actual cost of gasoline that U.S. consumers purchase for their cars is

A) about $1 per gallon which makes it even more unfair that we are currently paying around $4 per gallon.
B) about $4 per gallon, so the current prices at the pump are right on target.
C) about $6 per gallon which is more in line with fair prices paid in European countries
D) about $14 per gallon when one considers estimated harmful environmental and health costs.
E) it was $2 per gallon until Hurricane Katrina and Deep Horizon oil spill caused increases in production costs and decreases in availability.

Question 47

Government subsidies can actually encourage companies to conduct business in ways that result in environmental degradation.

Question 48

An environmentally sustainable society must be based only on policies that provide for economic growth and development.

Question 49

The United States has the world's largest per capita ecological footprint.

Question 50

Pollution cleanup is considered a short-term solution if population and consumption levels grow without corresponding improvement in pollution control technology.

Question 51

The tragedy of the commons is a phenomenon that occurs only when the number of users is small.

Question 52

Perpetual resources exist in a fixed quantity or stock in the Earth's crust.

Question 53

We can say that biodiversity is a factor in maintaining life on this planet.

Question 54

In 2009, the world population is about

A) 6.0 billion people
B) 2.0 billion people
C) 9.0 billion people
D) 8.0 million people
E) 7.0 billion people

Question 55

Natural resources are considered natural capital, but natural services are not..

Question 56

Billions of poverty-stricken people do not have access to basic necessities of life. The lack of which one of the following basic necessities affects the largest number of people?

A) enough fuel for heating and cooking
B) adequate sanitation facilities
C) clean drinking water
D) adequate housing
E) enough food for good health

Question 57

Polluting chemicals enter the environment only through human activities.

Question 58

An important goal of environmental science is to learn how life on the earth has thrived and survived.

Question 59

If industry managers ask the question "How can my company avoid producing polluting air exhaust from my factory?" they are seeking pollution prevent, which is preferable to pollution cleanup.

Question 60

Every day, approximately _____ new people are added to the global population.

A) 53 million
B) 100 million
C) 83 million
D) 153 million
E) 250,000 (a quarter of a million)

Question 61

Old drink bottles that are collected, washed, and refilled are an example of ____________________.

Question 62

A single, identifiable source of pollution is called a(n) ____________________.

Question 63

One of the ways we can slow population growth is to elevate the status of women.

Question 64

____________________ are materials and energy in nature that are essential or useful to humans.

Question 65

____________________ is the contamination of the environment by a chemical or other agent such as noise or heat to a level that is harmful to the health, survival or activities of humans of other organisms..

Question 66

The three principles of sustainability are chemical cycling, reliance on solar energy, and ____________________.

Question 67

Pesticides blown from agricultural lands into the air is an example of ____________________ pollution.

Question 68

Natural capital is comprised of natural resources and natural ____________________.

Question 69

____________________ are functions of nature, such as purification of air and water, that support life and human economies.

Question 70

Pollution ____________________ is cheaper and more effective than pollution ____________________.

Question 71

The IPAT model of environmental impact takes into consideration population size, technology, and ____________________.

Question 72

Developing countries can be classified as moderately developed, middle-income, or as ____________________, least developed.

Question 73

A(n) ________________is anything obtained from the environment to meet our needs and wants.

Question 74

A resource such as solar energy that is renewed continuously is a called a(n) ____________________.

Question 75

____________________ is the ability of the Earth's various natural systems and human cultural systems and economies to survive and adapt to changing environmental conditions indefinitely.

Question 76

When we exceed a renewable resource's natural replacement rate, the available supply begins to shrink through a process known as ____________________.

Question 77

The action of processing plastic or aluminum cans into another usable product is called ____________________.

Question 78

A(n )____________________ is a set of organisms within a defined area or volume that interact with one another and with their environment of nonliving matter and energy.

Question 79

A massive cloud of air pollution largely generated in China affects only China, but causes serious respiratory problems there.

Question 80

The highest rate at which a renewable resource can be used indefinitely without reducing its available supply is called its ____________________.