Practice Test Geeks(CES) Certified Environmental Scientist Practice Test
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Water Quality & Watershed Management Flashcards

7 cards from real CES 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 & Watershed Management flashcards as text

  1. Under the NPDES permit system, a municipal separate storm sewer system (MS4) operator is required to implement which primary management approach?

    Answer: Six minimum control measures for stormwater management

    Phase I and Phase II NPDES permits for MS4s require implementation of six minimum control measures including public education, illicit discharge detection, and construction site controls.

  2. Eutrophication in lakes is most directly driven by excess inputs of which nutrients?

    Answer: Nitrogen and phosphorus

    Excess nitrogen and phosphorus stimulate algal blooms that lead to oxygen depletion, reduced light penetration, and degraded aquatic habitat in a process called eutrophication.

  3. Which physical characteristic of a watershed most directly influences the flashiness of its storm response?

    Answer: Percentage of impervious surface cover

    High percentages of impervious surface reduce infiltration, causing rapid runoff concentration that produces sharp, high-amplitude storm hydrographs (flashy response).

  4. In drinking water treatment, the primary purpose of coagulation and flocculation is to remove which contaminants?

    Answer: Suspended particles, colloids, and turbidity

    Coagulation and flocculation destabilize and aggregate colloidal and suspended particles so they can be removed by subsequent sedimentation and filtration.

  5. Which federal regulation establishes maximum contaminant levels (MCLs) for public drinking water supplies in the United States?

    Answer: Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA)

    The Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) of 1974 authorizes EPA to set MCLs and treatment technique requirements for public water systems to protect public health.

  6. A riparian buffer strip is most effective when it contains which type of vegetation arrangement?

    Answer: Multi-layered mix of grasses, shrubs, and trees

    Multi-layered riparian buffers with grasses, shrubs, and trees provide maximum pollutant removal, bank stabilization, and wildlife habitat through diverse root structures and canopy.

  7. The concept of 'first flush' in stormwater management refers to which phenomenon?

    Answer: Disproportionately high pollutant concentrations in early stormwater runoff

    The first flush effect describes the phenomenon where the initial portion of stormwater runoff carries the highest concentrations of accumulated pollutants from impervious surfaces.