Unit 7 FRQ Practice PDF

Unit 7 FRQ practice Indoor Air and Noise Pollution Air and noise pollution can occur both indoors and outdoors. They can have natural sources or be released from anthropogenic sources. (a) Coal combustion releases a variety of air pollutants. i. Identify one air pollutant released from the combus...

Unit 7 FRQ practice Indoor Air and Noise Pollution Air and noise pollution can occur both indoors and outdoors. They can have natural sources or be released from anthropogenic sources. (a) Coal combustion releases a variety of air pollutants. i. Identify one air pollutant released from the combustion of coal. ii. Describe one method to reduce the air pollutants released from a coal-burning power plant. (b) The diagram of the house below shows potential sources of indoor air pollutants. i. Based on the diagram, identify which of the labeled sources of indoor air pollutants would most likely release particulate matter. ii. Describe a negative effect of indoor particulate matter on human health. iii. Describe a source of radon that could lead to indoor air pollution. iv. Describe how radon would most likely enter the house in the diagram. Global Climate Change and Timber Forests (a) Carbon dioxide produced by anthropogenic sources contributes to global climate change. (i) Identify TWO environmental problems, other than the loss of biodiversity, that are occuring as a result of global climate change. (ii) Describe one human activity, other than the burning of fossil fuels, that releases ​CO​2​ into the atmosphere. (b) Timber companies around the world plant and manage forests to provide timber for human use. An environmental benefit of these managed forests is that they sequester carbon in the biomass of the trees, which decreases the amount of ​CO​2 i​ n the atmosphere, at least over a relatively short time span. The graph below shows the results of a computer simulation that predicts the amount of carbon sequestration in two different managed forests (both with the same number of trees and covering the same surface area) composed of two different tree species over a 140-year period. (i) Describe the pattern in carbon sequestration for the black locust forest from 2010 to 2050 on the graph. (ii) Describe the most likely reason for the difference in the carbon sequestered between the black locust forest and the common oak forest from 2010 to about 2030 on the graph. (iii) There are three major declines in the carbon sequestered in the black locust forest on the graph. Explain the most likely reason for these declines. (iv) Based on the data in the graph, describe the maximum amount of carbon that can be sequestered using mature common oak in a managed forest of this size. (c) Planting and managing forests for timber is not the only way human activities can sequester carbon and lower C ​ O​2 l​ evels in the atmosphere. (i) Propose a solution, other than planting and managing forests for timber, to decrease the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. (ii) Justify the solution proposed in ​(ci) b ​ y explaining an additional benefit, other than reducing global climate change or decreasing the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. (iii) Describe one potential disadvantage of planting and managing timber forests, especially in less-developed countries, as a solution to address global climate change. SMOG and ACID RAIN (a) Air pollutants are a concern because they can lead to a variety of negative environmental and human health consequences. One group of such pollutants is nitrogen oxides. i. Identify one way nitrogen oxides ​(NO​x)​ ​are commonly introduced into the atmosphere. ii. Explain how nitrogen oxides released into the atmosphere can lead to the formation of a secondary pollutant that can lead to acid deposition. iii. Describe one method for reducing nitrogen oxide emissions into the atmosphere from anthropogenic sources. (b) Nitrogen dioxide is a nitrogen oxide that can lead to the formation of ozone ​(O​3)​ ​and photochemical smog in the troposphere. The three figures below show three scenarios involving O ​ 3​ formation and destruction in the troposphere. i. Describe how the sun affects the processes illustrated in Figure 1. The response explains that in the presence of sunlight, ozone forms as shown in Figure 1. ii. Describe how the sun affects the process illustrated in Figure 2. The response explains that when the amount of sunlight decreases/there is no sunlight, ozone breaks down as shown in Figure 2. iii. Explain how the presence of volatile organic compounds (​ VOCs) i​ n Figure 3 prevents the process seen in Figure 2. Solar Radiation and El Nino Energy from the Sun drives the Earth’s climate and weather. The most intense solar radiation arrives at the equator. Solar radiation leads to the greenhouse effect, which is essential for life on Earth. (a) There is evidence that global climate change over the past 100 years has led to an increased warming of Earth because of the greenhouse effect. (i) Describe how the solar radiation that arrives at the equator is redistributed around the Earth through atmospheric circulation. (ii) Identify one human activity that could directly contribute to global climate change. (iii) Describe how the activity identified in part (a)(ii) could affect the relative abundance of the major greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. (b) The model below shows a cross sectional view of El Niño conditions. (i) Describe a change in ocean circulation that results from an El Niño event that is represented in the model. (ii) Explain how a change in the atmosphere that results from El Niño conditions represented in the model would affect Australia. (iii) Describe one environmental effect resulting from the conditions represented in the model that could have a negative effect on humans in western South America.