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NRSC 333 > 3. Environmental Disasters & Persistent Problems > Flashcards

3. Environmental Disasters & Persistent Problems Flashcards

1
Q

What is the dilution paradigm?

A

the solution to pollution is dilution

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2
Q

What is NIMBY?

A
  • Not in my backyard
  • Nobody wants the band environmental things to happen to them / right next to them
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3
Q

What is the boomerang paradigm?

A

what you throw away can come back and hurt you

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4
Q

What is the precautionary principle?

A

The absence of complete scientific evidence to take precautions does not mean that precautions should not be taken – especially when there is a possibility of irreversible damage.

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5
Q

Can the precautionary principle be harmful in itself?

A

Yes

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6
Q

Quebec wildfire, 2023: what?

A

Unprecedented fires in Quebec

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7
Q

Quebec wildfire, 2023: toxicant

A

PM2.5

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8
Q

Quebec wildfire, 2023: who’s affected? and how are they affected?

A
  • humans and animals
  • air pollution
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9
Q

What is PM2.5?

A

Particulate matter 2.5 microns and less

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10
Q

What is the largest environmental cause of disease and premature death?

A

Pollution

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11
Q

What type of pollution is the most consequential on human health?

A

Air pollution

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12
Q

Why does air pollution have such a big affect on human health?

A

Because humans consume 11,000L of air per day
(versus 2L of water, and 2kg of food)

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13
Q

Love Canal, 1978: what?

A
  • A chemical waste dump was filled over with clay and a neighborhood was built on top
  • Wet winters raised the water table which caused the chemicals to leach
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14
Q

Love Canal, 1978: toxicant? (3)

A
  • PCBs
  • dioxin
  • benzene
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15
Q

Love Canal, 1978: who was affected and how?

A
  • Neighborhood, school children
  • Birth defects, miscarriages, inexplicable illnesses resulted
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16
Q

Agent orange, 1961-71: what?

A

Agent Orange is a chemical herbicide used by the US military during the Vietnam War to defoliate the entire area, flatten the exostem

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17
Q

Agent orange, 1961-71: key toxicant

A

dioxin (contaminant within the herbicide)

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18
Q

Agent orange, 1961-71: who was affected and how?

A
  • killed 300,000 people; 3M Vietnamese ppl affected
  • illnesses, disabled, birth defects
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19
Q

Dark Waters, 1999: what?

A
  • The chemical company Dupont contaminated the water in West Virginia and Ohio
  • Cattle was fouled, and that is how they figured out the water was contaminated
20
Q

Dark Waters, 1999: toxicant?

A

PFAs

21
Q

Dark Waters, 1999: who was affected?

A

The people and the cows drinking from the contaminated water

22
Q

Dark Waters, 1999: bioindicator species?

A

Cow

23
Q

Deepwater Horizon oil spill, April 20, 2010: what?

A
  • Largest oil spill
  • 4.9 million barrels of oil spilled
24
Q

Deepwater Horizon oil spill, April 20, 2010: toxicant? (3)

A
  • benzene
  • BTEX
  • PAHs
25
Q

Deepwater Horizon oil spill, April 20, 2010: who was affected?

A
  • killed 11 people
  • adverse health effects to marine animals
26
Q

Minamata disease, 1950s: what?

A
  • Traced to Chisso chemical company
  • Linked to eating shellfish and fish
27
Q

Minamata disease, 1950s: toxicant

A

methylmercury

28
Q

Minamata disease, 1950s: who was affected and how?

A
  • population of Minimata
  • cats
  • severe neurological disease
29
Q

Minamata disease, 1950s: what did we learn? (3)

A
  • Biomagnification: the amount of Hg released by the company was at safe levels, but because of biomagnification the levels increased for humans and cats eating fish
  • Bio indicator species: cats
  • Dilution is not always the solution
30
Q

Acid Rain,1970s: what?

A
  • Burning fossil fuels releases sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides into the atmosphere
  • There they react in the atmosphere to form acidic compounds
  • They then fall to the earth as precipitation or dust
31
Q

Acid Rain,1970s: how did they recognize it

A

Damage to limestone architecture

32
Q

Acid Rain,1970s: effects?

A

Damage to aquatic and terrestrial habitats

33
Q

Acid Rain,1970s: why was it a cross-border issue?

A

because of long-range transport

34
Q

Acid Rain,1970s: Canadian research on acid rain

A
  • Whole ecosystem experiment at the Experimental Lakes Area (ELA)
  • Scientists added sulphuric acid to one lake to lower the pH to 5.0
  • Previous studies had shown that pH 5.0 is not harmful to fish
35
Q

Exxon Valdez, 1989: what?

A

37 million of oil spilled off the coast of Alaska

36
Q

Exxon Valdez, 1989: lessons learned (3)

A
  • oil spill responses
  • lasting damage (effects still >20 years leater)
  • out of sight out of mind?
37
Q

Types of oil spill responses (4)

A
  • light on fire
  • try to absorb it
  • dispersants (what they did for exxon valdez and deepwater horizon)
  • natural attenuation
38
Q

What is the Montreal Protocol (1985) ?

A

Phase out on the use of CFCs in aerosol cans and as refrigerants

39
Q

Why was the Montreal Protocol put into place?

A

Depletion of stratospheric ozone and increased ultraviolet-B radiation in the troposphere

40
Q

What was the Stockholm Convention (2001) ?

A

Banned 9 of the Dirty Dozen
(Dirty Dozen = POPs persistent organic pollutants)

41
Q

Why was the Stockholm convention implemented?

A

Reproductive failure of predatory fish and wildlife due to high persistence, bioaccumulation, and biomagnification

42
Q

What was the European REACH Agreement (2006)?

A

A regulatory initiative for the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals

Regulations for all chemicals imported, manufactured, or used in amountss of more than 1 tonne per year per producer or importer

43
Q

Why was the European REACH Agreement (2006) implemented?

A

General concerns about chemical safety

44
Q

What was the Minimata Convention on Mercury (2013)?

A

It was a convention on mercury to control the anthropogenic releases and toxic effects of mercury by banning or restricting products containing mercury and controlling emissions to air, land, and water

45
Q

What are some persistent problems (7)?

A
  • Endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs)
  • Microplastics
  • Pesticides
  • Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)
  • Oil spills
  • Replacement chemicals
  • Government regulation and animal use
46
Q

What is 6PPD-quinone and what is the issue with it? (5 points)

A
  • Put into tires to prevent them from cracking
  • In 2020, mass mortality of coho salmon linked to a chemical that comes from rubber tires
  • Parent compound is 6PPD
    ○ 6PPD-quinone is a product of a reaction between 6PPD and ozone
  • Other fish species are also sensitive to it (rainbow trout, brook trout)
  • But on the other hand, some fist species are not affected (arctic char, white sturgeon)
47
Q

Lessons learned from 6PPD-quinone? (2)

A
  • Tire companies were unaware the 6PPD-quinone was being produced
    * Consider hazard of metabolites and degradation products
  • Not all species are equally sensitive
    • Consider the adequacy of toxicity testing

NRSC 333 (23 decks)

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