Environmental Assessment & Sampling Techniques Flashcards
7 cards from real CEA practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Environmental Assessment & Sampling Techniques flashcards as text
During a wetland delineation, which three-parameter approach is used under the 1987 Corps of Engineers Wetland Delineation Manual?
Answer: Hydrology, hydric soils, and hydrophytic vegetation
The 1987 Corps of Engineers Wetland Delineation Manual requires the presence of hydrology, hydric soils, and hydrophytic vegetation for a wetland determination.
When using a PID (Photoionization Detector) during soil gas screening, a reading of 500 ppm in the headspace of a soil sample most appropriately indicates:
Answer: Elevated VOC presence warranting further laboratory confirmation
PID readings are screening tools that indicate the presence of ionizable compounds; elevated readings warrant confirmatory laboratory analysis to identify and quantify specific compounds.
A sediment sample is collected for metals analysis. Which preservation method is required for total metals in sediment per EPA guidance?
Answer: Cool to 4°C with no chemical preservative
Sediment samples for total metals analysis are preserved by cooling to 4°C without chemical acidification, unlike dissolved metals in water which require acidification.
Which document formally transfers legal custody and responsibility for environmental samples from field collection through laboratory analysis?
Answer: Chain-of-Custody (COC) record
The Chain-of-Custody record is a legal document that tracks sample possession, transfer, and integrity from collection through final analysis and is required for defensible data.
Under EPA's TSCA regulations, what action is required if asbestos-containing materials (ACM) containing greater than 1% asbestos are identified during a facility audit?
Answer: Implement an Operations & Maintenance (O&M) program if ACM is in good condition
TSCA and AHERA regulations allow ACM in good condition to remain in place under a written Operations & Maintenance program rather than requiring immediate removal.
What is the primary purpose of well development after installing a new groundwater monitoring well?
Answer: To remove drilling fluids and fine particles to restore natural aquifer conditions
Well development removes drilling-induced sediment, fine particles, and drilling fluids from the well and surrounding formation to restore natural aquifer permeability and ensure representative samples.
A regulatory agency requires TCLP (Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure) testing of a waste material. What is the TCLP designed to evaluate?
Answer: Potential for contaminants to leach under simulated landfill conditions
TCLP (EPA Method 1311) simulates the leaching that would occur in a co-disposal municipal landfill to determine if a waste exhibits the toxicity characteristic under RCRA.