Environmental Hazards & Risk Assessment Flashcards
7 cards from real Environmental Compliance Inspector 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 Hazards & Risk Assessment flashcards as text
When assessing risk from lead contamination at a residential site with children present, which exposure route typically contributes the MOST to total lead intake for young children?
Answer: Ingestion of soil and dust through hand-to-mouth behavior
Young children's frequent hand-to-mouth behavior makes soil and dust ingestion the dominant exposure pathway for lead at residential sites.
A facility releases a chemical with a bioconcentration factor (BCF) of 15,000. What environmental concern does this high BCF value raise?
Answer: The chemical will accumulate in aquatic organisms to levels far exceeding water concentrations
A high BCF indicates the chemical concentrates in aquatic organisms' tissues at levels thousands of times higher than ambient water concentrations, raising bioaccumulation concerns.
Under RCRA, what is the definition of a 'characteristic hazardous waste'?
Answer: Waste that exhibits ignitability, corrosivity, reactivity, or toxicity
Characteristic hazardous wastes are those that exhibit one or more of four characteristics: ignitability, corrosivity, reactivity, or toxicity (TCLP test).
An inspector finds that a contaminated plume is migrating toward a municipal water supply well. Which risk management tool would MOST immediately protect public health while long-term remediation is planned?
Answer: Installing a pump-and-treat system or containment barrier
Pump-and-treat or hydraulic containment can immediately prevent contaminated groundwater from reaching the water supply well while permanent remediation is implemented.
What is the primary purpose of a 'fate and transport' analysis in environmental risk assessment?
Answer: Predicting how contaminants move and transform in the environment over time
Fate and transport analysis models how contaminants migrate through environmental media (soil, water, air) and how they degrade or transform over time.
Which of the following is NOT a typical component of a quantitative human health risk assessment as outlined in EPA's four-step framework?
Answer: Cost-benefit analysis
EPA's four-step risk assessment framework consists of hazard identification, dose-response assessment, exposure assessment, and risk characterization—cost-benefit analysis is a separate risk management activity.
A site has polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in soil. Which PAH is typically used as an indicator compound for cancer risk from PAH mixtures?
Answer: Benzo(a)pyrene
Benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) is the standard indicator compound for carcinogenic PAH risk because it is a potent carcinogen and its toxicity equivalency factors are well established.