The Environment 17 & 18 – Flashcards

deforestation

may contaminate groundwater

bioreactor landfills

ISW is usually managed by the private sector.

Take it to a household hazardous waste collection center.

725 kg

India

incineration

methane

incinerating

It contains heavy metals.

Yucca Mountain, Nevada

5%

coal ash

50%

2-5%

buying individual items, not in bulk

1965 Solid Waste Disposal Act

1899 Rivers and Harbors Act

the product is reused to produce a similar product

life-cycle assessment

chemical and petroleum industries

corrosive, flammable, and explosive

oil spills

Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act

extended product responsibility

processing of waste in facilities outside of the United States

1985-1990

1 million tons/year

personal reuse and recycling efforts are having an effect

Recycling rates have leveled off.

Materials that are discarded from homes, small businesses, and institutions

Waste produced in industrial processing before the finished product reaches the consumer

Incinerators that use the heat produced by burning waste to produce electricity

Storage areas for waste that are designed to prevent groundwater contamination, odors, and aesthetic problems

Decayed organic matter that can improve the fertility and water-holding capacity of soil

composting organic material to increase agricultural productivity

establishing central transfer stations where waste types could be separated for more efficient and potential use

First, reducing the amount of waste generated should be the focus. This can be accomplished by purchasing items in reusable containers, or if this is not possible for some items, then to choose items with as little packaging as possible. Packaging waste (paper and plastic) accounts for a significant amount of waste entering the municipal waste stream. Second, increasing the amount of recycling one participates in would be a significant action. Although the current rate of recycling in the United States is just over 30%, in Japan and many European countries it exceeds 50%. Finally, one could consider reusing some wastes, particularly paper and plastic bags used to carry purchased food and material goods. Never using another paper or plastic bag (using cloth, reusable bags instead) would be a significant action, especially if practiced by every U.S. citizen.

First, nuclear power plants primarily generate high-level radioactive wastes, mostly in the form of spent fuel rods. With over 100 nuclear power plants in the United States, these sites are spread over vast regions of the country. They are currently the storage site for their own spent fuel rods: initially in wet storage (to dissipate the extreme heat) and finally in stainless steel casks for dry, longer-term storage. Because spent fuel rods still contain high levels of radioactive material, this waste must be kept away from groundwater, soil, humans, and the environment, even in the short term. Second, because the very long half-life of the radioactive isotopes making up the spent fuel, the safe storage and management requirements are much more comprehensive than on-site storage will allow. Permanent long-term storage continues to be an issue for the United States, as there has not been a central site licensed for this high-level radioactive waste. Although Yucca Mountain, Nevada was proposed, the uncertainties presented by this site, and the nearby community concerns, have resulted in the government's failure to successfully identify a site that will meet all the criteria necessary for permanent storage.

DDT

4

risk

earthquake

malaria exposure

the toxicity threshold

7.8

tropical storms

age

deforestation

decreased

body burden

toxin effects on human health

at which 50% of an exposed population is killed or displays a specific symptom

lead

average length of time a molecule of a substance spends in the environment

the process by which chemicals are stored in the tissues of living organisms

carcinogens

plastics

pigs

malaria

asthma

schistosomiasis

Lyme Disease

PCB

These all influence risk perceptions.

malaria

water-borne diarrheal pathogens

schistosomiasis

The dose of a chemical above which there is a measurable decline in the health measure

The process by which chemicals are stored in the tissues of living organisms

Concentrations of a chemical increase at each higher level of the food web

Chemicals that cause or support cancer

Substances that cause mutations and birth defects

Temperature increases improves mosquito breeding conditions.

increased insecticide resistance

DDT is a synthetic chemical, developed in the mid-1940s as an insecticide to be used against malaria. This chemical has many of the critical characteristics that cause it to be particularly harmful to a wide array of warm-blooded organisms, including humans. Its persistence, transport in the environment, and uptake by many non-target organisms contribute significantly to its environmental health concerns. DDT is not easily broken down in the environment, and even its by-products are toxic. DDT's environmental persistence is estimated to vary between 30 and 100 years. Because it is sprayed over wide areas, it easily gets into water supplies and affects aquatic food webs. Because it is taken up by insects and other small organisms found in lower trophic levels, its ability to bioaccumulate in higher organisms in the food chain is dependent on its fat solubility characteristic. That is, DDT is able to be stored in the tissues of living organisms without breaking down, and this characteristic leads to its biomagnification in the food web. Organisms that feed on other organisms whose tissues have stored DDT, are likely to store an even higher concentration. Some of the most well-documented environmental effects of DDT have been egg-shell thinning in birds of prey; however, cancer and developmental abnormalities have also been documented in amphibians and other higher vertebrates.

The effect of toxic substances on humans varies considerably, depending on the factors of genetic makeup, age, health, and socioeconomic status. Firstly, one's genetic makeup plays an important role in susceptibility to chemicals. There is a growing body of evidence showing that humans vary in the ability of their DNA to be altered by toxic chemicals, thus equal toxicant exposures can result in quite a difference in susceptibility to cancer. Age particularly influences vulnerability because the young and developing, human nervous system undergoes enormous changes during the first decade of life, making children particularly vulnerable to neurotoxins. Finally, there is a growing body of evidence showing that socioeconomic status affects vulnerability to toxicants. Not only do poor people have more limited access to health care, they are also much more likely to live in environments that increase their risk of exposure. Living in older homes with lead paint, or living closer to industrial and waste facilities, are often considered normal living conditions for lower socioeconomic groups.