ENV SP Environmental Compliance 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Under the Clean Water Act, which permit program regulates point source discharges of pollutants into navigable waters of the United States?
- RCRA Permit Program
- NPDES Permit Program (Correct answer)
- CERCLA Authorization Program
- FIFRA Registration Program
Correct answer: NPDES Permit Program
The National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) under the Clean Water Act controls water pollution by regulating point sources that discharge pollutants into navigable waters.
Question 2: Which federal regulation requires facilities to plan for and report accidental releases of extremely hazardous substances above threshold planning quantities?
- TSCA Section 8
- EPCRA Section 302 (Correct answer)
- CERCLA Section 103
- CAA Title III
Correct answer: EPCRA Section 302
EPCRA Section 302 requires facilities with extremely hazardous substances above threshold planning quantities to notify their State Emergency Response Commission and Local Emergency Planning Committee.
Question 3: What is the primary purpose of a Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) Plan under the Clean Water Act?
- Regulate stormwater discharges from industrial sites
- Prevent oil spills from reaching navigable waters (Correct answer)
- Control air emissions from industrial boilers
- Manage hazardous waste storage requirements
Correct answer: Prevent oil spills from reaching navigable waters
SPCC Plans are designed to prevent oil spills from reaching navigable waters or adjoining shorelines by requiring facilities to implement containment and response measures.
Question 4: Under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), which classification applies to a generator that produces between 100 and 1,000 kilograms of hazardous waste per month?
- Very Small Quantity Generator (VSQG)
- Small Quantity Generator (SQG) (Correct answer)
- Large Quantity Generator (LQG)
- Conditionally Exempt Generator (CEG)
Correct answer: Small Quantity Generator (SQG)
Under RCRA, Small Quantity Generators (SQGs) produce between 100 and 1,000 kg of hazardous waste per month and have intermediate regulatory requirements.
Question 5: Which environmental law established the Superfund program to clean up sites contaminated with hazardous substances?
- Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
- Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) (Correct answer)
- Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)
- Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA)
Correct answer: Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA)
CERCLA, commonly known as Superfund, created a tax on chemical and petroleum industries and provided broad federal authority to respond directly to releases of hazardous substances.
Question 6: What does an Environmental Management System (EMS) based on ISO 14001 require as its core planning element?
- A public environmental impact statement
- Identification of environmental aspects and their impacts (Correct answer)
- Mandatory third-party environmental audits
- Government-approved pollution reduction targets
Correct answer: Identification of environmental aspects and their impacts
ISO 14001 requires organizations to identify environmental aspects of their activities and determine which have significant impacts as the foundation of their EMS planning.
Question 7: Under the Clean Air Act, what is a Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) permit designed to protect?
- Areas currently exceeding National Ambient Air Quality Standards
- Areas already meeting air quality standards from significant air quality degradation (Correct answer)
- Coastal wetlands from industrial air pollution
- Urban areas from mobile source emissions
Correct answer: Areas already meeting air quality standards from significant air quality degradation
PSD permits protect areas that already meet NAAQS by ensuring new or modified major sources don't significantly worsen air quality in those attainment areas.
ENV SP Environmental Compliance 2
Under the Clean Water Act, which permit program regulates point source discharges of pollutants into navigable waters of the United States?