Land Use

Which of the following is an example of an industrial practice that contributes to the tragedy of the commons?

• Burning fossil fuels for energy production

• Creating constructed wetlands on abandoned land

• Enacting and enforcing legislation on point-source pollutants

• Promoting aluminum and glass recycling

After intensive logging, most of the trees along a stream have been removed. Which of the following water quality changes would most likely occur downstream after logging?

• Increased water temperature

• Increased dissolved oxygen

• Decreased total dissolved solids

• Decreased amount of fecal coliform

Which of the following is a direct economic consequence that would likely occur if an area of forest was clear-cut so that a housing development can be built?

• A decrease in atmospheric oxygen concentration

• A decrease in the number of game hunting licenses purchased

• An increase in taxes from ecotourism

• An increase in legislation to regulate stream flow

Which of the following environmental effects would most likely result from the clear-cutting of boreal forests by industrial logging operations?

• Increase in farming on the cleared areas of land, which will reduce flooding.

• Increase in atmospheric oxygen concentration, which will improve air quality.

• Increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration, which will contribute to climate change.

• Decrease in the temperature of soil and nearby bodies of water

Which of the following best describes the concept of the tragedy of the commons?

• Resources that are shared by individuals, such as the Ogallala Aquifer groundwater, are highly regulated by legislation, thereby depriving common people of their use.

• Communities enact recycling programs to reduce the amount of materials that need to be mined. The cost of the recycling program is absorbed by community taxes.

• The aim of large logging operations in tropical rain forests is economic gain, rather than sustainability. Therefore, the shared resources in the forest could become depleted.

• Soil nutrients, such as nitrates, are used unequally depending on the type of vegetation. Therefore, farmers must add fertilizers to certain areas to grow crops.

An urban planner is designing a new urban housing development. It will have five apartment buildings, two basketball courts, a playground with permeable foam pavers, a 10-acre green space with a small man-made pond, one 5-story parking deck, and direct access to the mass transit train line.

Which of the following will best help to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere?

• The land cleared to build the new development occurs in a rural area rather than within the city limits.

• The playground is made with permeable foam pavers rather than with impervious concrete.

• Access to the mass transit train line will provide inhabitants an alternative to driving personal vehicles.

• Food and other resources must be transported to the development from up to 200 miles away.

Which of the following would be considered an advantage of increased urban sprawl?

• As individuals move out of urban areas to nearby suburbs, the population densities of cities will decrease, reducing the spread of infectious disease.

• As new homes are built in suburban areas, the cost of materials will decrease, reducing the need to clear-cut old-growth forests.

• As urban sprawl increases, the availability of land for farming and wildlife habitats will decrease, increasing the loss of biodiversity.

• As more individuals live in suburbs and work in cities, transportation methods will change, reducing the amount of carbon dioxide emitted.

The Hawaiian Islands were formed

• at a divergent plate boundary
• at a hot spot
• at a convergent plate boundary
• at a transform fault

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-3

Which type of mining is usually most directly harmful to miners?

• sub-surface mining
• open pit mining
• placer mining
• strip mining

Acid mine drainage causes

• air pollution
• water pollution 
• subsidence
• erosion

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-2

NGSS.MS-ESS3-1