Question 1

Half the coal used in the United States comes from this extraction process:

Accepted Answer

A) strip mining 
B) open-pit mines 
C) tar fields 
D) oil rigs 
E) runoff from farms

Question 2

Why would the environmental degradation associated with mining be a low priority for a less-developed country?

Accepted Answer

A) The country relies on the export of a mineral for the majority of their foreign exchange. 
B) There is usually a smaller population,so that environmental consequences are of less importance. 
C) Less-developed countries are more likely to import minerals so environmental degradation is not as important to them. 
D) The environmental impact of mining is low. 
E) Environmental degradation is usually not concern for residents of less-developed countries.

Question 3

Problems associated with gemstones and precious metals such as gold and diamonds would not be attributed to which of the following?

Accepted Answer

A) They are often used to finance violent civil wars. 
B) They are often used to finance terrorism. 
C) Their extraction often involves slave labor and torture. 
D) Their extraction often involves environmental destruction. 
E) Their distribution to developed nations is often banned.

Question 4

Which environmental impact would not be a result of placer mining?

Accepted Answer

A) destroying streambed habitats 
B) clogging streams with silt 
C) introducing toxic compounds to streams 
D) smothering aquatic life 
E) contamination of underground aquifers

Question 5

A giant sea swell known as a tsunami is caused by

Accepted Answer

A) typhoons. 
B) earthquakes. 
C) lunar gravity. 
D) unusual tides combined with seasonal storms. 
E) a strong wave during an exceptionally high tide.

Question 6

Which of the following statements regarding tectonic plate movement is true?

Accepted Answer

A) Because of tectonic movements,Europe and Africa are drifting slowly toward the Americas. 
B) When continental plates collide with continental plates,both plates usually subside. 
C) When oceanic plates collide with continental plates,the continent usually rides up over the seafloor. 
D) Because of tectonic movements,India is moving away from China. 
E) When oceanic plates collide with continental plates,the oceanic plate usually rides up over the continental plate.

Question 7

Use the following scenario in answering the question.After reading a newspaper article about gold mining prospects near your home town,your sister commented that it seems as though miners are going after ores with less and less concentrations of the gold.She mentions the rich gold veins and nuggets that she reads about in historical accounts of gold mining and wonders what factors have lead to the change.She tells you that she knows that the days of gold nuggets in the streams are gone,but that she can't believe how small the percentage of gold is in the ore they are now mining.First,you tell your sister that she sounds like your father,commenting on the good old days.Then you explain to her that there are many factors driving the changes and that there are important environmental implications of the mining.
-Which of the following factors were not in your explanation?

Accepted Answer

A) Technological inventions can increase the efficiency of gold extraction from the ore. 
B) New sources of the gold ore are found through better exploration techniques. 
C) Technological inventions can increase efficiency of gold processing out of the ore. 
D) As supplies decrease and prices rise it is less rewarding to explore for new sources of the gold.

Question 8

Building and farming on a flood plain decreases the land's ability to absorb flood waters.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 9

Coal would be obtained through

Accepted Answer

A) drilling a well. 
B) mountain-top removal. 
C) fracking. 
D) heap-leach extraction.

Question 10

A major environmental implication of the quest for more gold at lower concentrations in the ore compared to higher concentrations is that

Accepted Answer

A) about the same amount of toxic gas is released from digging out the gold. 
B) less waste rock is produced. 
C) less material has to be moved to get to the gold. 
D) more carbon dioxide is released as the gold is mined. 
E) more material has to be moved to get to the gold.

Question 11

The most abundant element in the Earth's crust is ________.

Accepted Answer

A) iron 
B) silicon 
C) oxygen 
D) aluminum 
E) hydrogen

Question 12

The "ring of fire" is the source of more earthquakes and volcanic activity than any other place on earth.What causes the ring of fire?

Accepted Answer

A) the subduction of Pacific plates under continental plates 
B) the drift of Europe and Africa away from the Americas 
C) the collision of two continental plates 
D) mid-oceanic ridges 
E) earthquakes

Question 13

Which of the following would you not use to classify a rock you found on a recent hike?

Accepted Answer

A) chemical composition 
B) physical properties 
C) internal structure 
D) mode of formation 
E) color

Question 14

________ rocks are often the source of metal ores such as gold,silver,and copper.

Accepted Answer

A) Igneous 
B) Metamorphic 
C) Sedimentary 
D) Weathered

Question 15

Pressurized fluid injected into a well is used in a mining process called

Accepted Answer

A) fracking. 
B) heap-leach extraction. 
C) placer mining. 
D) injection molding.

Question 16

Heap-leach extraction involves piling crushed ore into large piles and spraying it with ________.

Accepted Answer

A) an alkaline-cyanide solution 
B) concentrated salt water 
C) high-pressure steam 
D) giant sandblasters 
E) None of these are correct.

Question 17

Metamorphic rocks are produced when rocks are

Accepted Answer

A) chemically weathered. 
B) formed by heat and pressure. 
C) physically broken down. 
D) melted in the mantle and emitted as lava. 
E) recrystallized through chemical processes.

Question 18

One of the largest earthquakes ever recorded in North America occurred around New Madrid Missouri in 1812.

Accepted Answer