CPWM Environmental Compliance 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A public works department is planning to repave a road built in 1978. Which environmental regulation most directly requires pre-construction testing of existing materials?
- Clean Water Act Section 404
- Toxic Substances Control Act (lead-based paint and asbestos provisions) (Correct answer)
- National Environmental Policy Act
- Endangered Species Act
Correct answer: Toxic Substances Control Act (lead-based paint and asbestos provisions)
TSCA governs lead-based paint and asbestos-containing materials, requiring testing and proper abatement procedures before disturbing materials in structures built before 1980.
Question 2: The primary purpose of a Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) for a construction site is to:
- Estimate total project stormwater runoff volumes for sizing detention ponds
- Identify potential pollution sources and BMPs to minimize discharge of pollutants (Correct answer)
- Document historical rainfall data for the project location
- Calculate impervious surface ratios for zoning compliance
Correct answer: Identify potential pollution sources and BMPs to minimize discharge of pollutants
A SWPPP identifies all potential stormwater pollution sources on a construction site and specifies best management practices to prevent pollutants from leaving the site.
Question 3: Which Clean Air Act program requires public works agencies to conduct ambient air quality monitoring near major construction projects in nonattainment areas?
- Title V Operating Permits
- Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD)
- National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) conformity (Correct answer)
- New Source Performance Standards (NSPS)
Correct answer: National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) conformity
General conformity requirements under NAAQS mandate that federally funded projects in nonattainment areas demonstrate they won't worsen air quality.
Question 4: A public works manager receives a request to discharge dredged material from a harbor maintenance project into open water. This activity requires authorization under:
- Clean Water Act Section 401
- Clean Water Act Section 404 (Correct answer)
- Rivers and Harbors Act Section 9
- Clean Water Act Section 402
Correct answer: Clean Water Act Section 404
Section 404 of the Clean Water Act authorizes the Army Corps of Engineers to regulate discharge of dredged or fill material into waters of the United States.
Question 5: Brownfield redevelopment sites often qualify for EPA funding assistance. The primary environmental challenge that defines a brownfield property is:
- Presence of federally listed endangered species
- Known or suspected contamination from previous industrial or commercial use (Correct answer)
- Location within a 100-year floodplain
- Proximity to a drinking water source or wellhead protection area
Correct answer: Known or suspected contamination from previous industrial or commercial use
Brownfields are defined by EPA as properties where expansion or redevelopment is complicated by real or perceived contamination from prior use.
Question 6: When a public works department applies road de-icing salts, the primary environmental compliance concern for nearby water bodies involves:
- pH elevation causing aquatic toxicity
- Elevated chloride concentrations harmful to freshwater ecosystems (Correct answer)
- Nitrogen loading that promotes algal blooms
- Petroleum hydrocarbon contamination of groundwater
Correct answer: Elevated chloride concentrations harmful to freshwater ecosystems
Road salt applications increase chloride concentrations in runoff, which is toxic to freshwater aquatic organisms and increasingly regulated under stormwater permits.
Question 7: Under the National Historic Preservation Act Section 106, public works projects using federal funds must consult with the State Historic Preservation Officer (SHPO) when:
- Projects cost more than $500,000 in federal funds
- Projects may affect properties listed or eligible for the National Register of Historic Places (Correct answer)
- Projects are located within designated historic districts only
- Projects involve demolition of any structure over 50 years old
Correct answer: Projects may affect properties listed or eligible for the National Register of Historic Places
Section 106 requires federal agencies to consider effects on historic properties eligible for or listed on the National Register before undertaking federally assisted projects.
CPWM Environmental Compliance 3
A public works department is planning to repave a road built in 1978.
Which environmental regulation most directly requires pre-construction testing of existing materials?