Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Section II: Free-Response Questions
Time: 90 minutes
4 questions
Directions: Each question is equally weighted. Plan to budget your time and allow yourself approximately 20
minutes per question. Write clearly to show any calculations when computations are necessary. Calculators are
not allowed. Where an explanation or discussion is required, support your answers with relevant information,
facts, and/or specific examples.
Question 1 refers to the following article by Martha Baskin of Green Acre Radio (Seattle, Washington).
An Urban Superfund Site, an Urban River, and the South Park Community
Ten years ago, the Duwamish was declared a Superfund site. The Superfund law was enacted to clean up
hazardoussubstancesthatendangerpublichealthandtheenvironment.Sofar,"help"fortheDuwamishhas
involved lengthy study and negotiations with the principal parties responsible for cleanup: the city, King
County,theport,andBoeing.Cleanupoftwohotspotsisunderway.Theycontaintheriver'smostpersistent
toxins: PCBs, PAHs or polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons, arsenic, and dioxin. But the EPA won't decide
aboutactionfortherestofthewaterwayuntil2013.TheEPA'sTristanGardnerusesLEGOstodemonstrate
options on the table: dredging, removal, containment, and natural recovery. "We're using the blue LEGOs
to represent the Duwamish, the gray to represent mud and the sediments, and the red to represent the pollu-
tion." Containment involves putting 10 to 20 feet of sand, clay, and other materials on top of the pollution.
"Now this doesn't remove the contamination, but it prevents it from being taken up by fish or disturbed by
human activity. So, when the clean water from upstream is coming down, it's not going to pick up the con-
tamination and deposit it somewhere else."
1. Answer the following questions:
A. Explain what it means when a site is listed as a Superfund site.
B. Name and explain the law that is also called the "Superfund."
C. Describe three likely consequences to the Duwamish River ecosystem as a result of the contamina-
tion.
D. Select one of the listed contaminants and cite a possible source and its potential health effects on
humans.
E. Cite and explain at least two possible issues associated with the proposed method of pollution con-
tainment.
2. A house is located in Southern California in an inland chaparral valley. The house is 2,000 square feet
and is cooled by a 5-ton central air-conditioning system. (A 1-ton air-conditioning unit subtracts 12,000
BTUs, the amount needed to melt 1 ton of ice in one day.) One kWh of electricity costs $0.10, and the
air conditioner uses an average of 25 kWh per day from June 1 through September 30.
A. Calculate the following, showing all the steps of your calculations.
a. The number of kWh of electricity used to cool the house for the summer.
b. The cost of cooling the house for the summer.
B. Identify and describe two actions the owner of the house could take to conserve electrical energy,
aside from replacing the air-conditioning unit with a more energy-efficient model.
 
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