Water Quality & Management Flashcards
7 cards from real CEP practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Water Quality & Management flashcards as text
Which federal regulation established the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit program?
Answer: Clean Water Act
The Clean Water Act of 1972 established the NPDES permit program to control point source discharges of pollutants into waters of the United States.
What is the primary purpose of a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) calculation?
Answer: Determining the maximum pollutant load a water body can receive while meeting water quality standards
A TMDL specifies the maximum amount of a pollutant that a water body can receive from all sources and still meet water quality standards.
Which process removes nitrogen from wastewater by converting nitrates to nitrogen gas?
Answer: Denitrification
Denitrification is the biological process where bacteria convert nitrates and nitrites to nitrogen gas, removing nitrogen from wastewater.
Under the Safe Drinking Water Act, which agency sets Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs) for public water supplies?
Answer: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
The U.S. EPA establishes MCLs for contaminants in public drinking water systems under authority granted by the Safe Drinking Water Act.
What type of water pollution originates from diffuse, non-specific locations such as agricultural runoff?
Answer: Nonpoint source pollution
Nonpoint source pollution comes from diffuse sources like agricultural lands, urban runoff, and atmospheric deposition rather than a single identifiable discharge point.
Which indicator bacteria is most commonly used to assess fecal contamination in recreational waters?
Answer: Escherichia coli
E. coli is the primary fecal indicator bacteria used to assess recreational water quality because it is specific to warm-blooded animal feces.
What does the term 'eutrophication' describe in water quality management?
Answer: Excessive nutrient enrichment leading to algae blooms and oxygen depletion
Eutrophication is the process by which excess nutrients, primarily nitrogen and phosphorus, stimulate algal growth, eventually depleting dissolved oxygen when algae decompose.