Chapter 7 Environmental Policy: Decision Making and Problem Solving
7.1 Graph and Figure Interpretation Questions
Use Figure 7.1 to answer the following questions.
1) According to the figure, the basis for government policy regarding environmental issues
________.
A) comes only from the natural and social sciences and is acted upon without bias
B) comes primarily from the private sector
C) comes from both the public and the private sectors
D) comes from the sciences, with additional input from the public and private sectors
E) is primarily driven by lobbying
2) The distinction of scientific study's input into governmental solution of environmental
problems is that it ________.
A) is modified by consumer incentives, such as rebates and tax breaks
B) is the product of both consumer advocacy and industrial goals
C) is independent of any other influences in its effect on forming government policy
D) bypasses the private sector in making improvements to technology
E) bypasses the public sector in determining consumer choices and lifestyles
3) Regarding the issue of global warming, until the hurricane season of 2005, the federal
government's official stance was that the information available from the scientific community
was neither conclusive nor persuasive. This governmental position was probably due to
________.
A) the lack of good, measurable data from the scientific community
B) the private sector's reluctance to change manufacturing and land use strategies
C) the consumer opinion polls
D) lobbying efforts on the part of environmental organizations
E) laws passed by voters
4) In recent decades a great deal of scientific research and observation has been funded and
published by commercial and corporate interests. Since this science may not have to pass the
peer review process and may have motives for biased reporting, it could be included in the
diagram as ________.
A) lobbying by the private sector
B) a new means of establishing government environmental policies
C) lobbying by the public sector
D) a box between "information and analysis" and "government"
E) a box above and pointing to the one titled "natural and social sciences"
7.2 Matching Questions
Match the following.
A) environmental clause
B) treaties
C) National Environmental Policy Act
D) policy
E) Western Merit Law
F) Land Use Laws
G) tort law
H) executive order
I) general land ordinances
J) statutory law
K) regulations
L) congressional act
1) A rule or guideline that directs individual, organizational, or societal behavior
2) Agreements with foreign countries
3) Specific rules based on more broadly written statutory law passed by Congress
4) Specific legal instructions, drafted by the president, for use by government agencies
5) Early environmental laws that gave the federal government the right to manage western lands
6) Law addressing harm to another person
7.3 Scenario-Based Questions
Read the following scenario and answer the questions below.
Wetlands provide a multitude of ecological, economic, and social benefits. They provide habitat
for many organisms and are nurseries for many saltwater and freshwater fishes and shellfish.
Wetlands also hold and slowly release floodwater and snow melt, recharge groundwater, act as
cleansing filters, recycle nutrients, and provide recreation. As of 2000, the contiguous United
States was estimated to have about 105 million acres of wetlands remaining. Over the past 60
years, it has lost over 16 million acres of wetlands, and the loss continues at about 58,000 acres
annually. Nearly one-third of the loss is due to urban development, with the rest being nearly
equally divided between rural development, agriculture, and silviculture (predominantly
logging). The southeastern United States is experiencing the greatest losses. The Emergency
Wetlands Resources Act of 1986 requires the Fish and Wildlife Service to conduct status and
trend studies of the nation's wetlands and to report the results to Congress each decade. The
overall goal is to have no more net loss of wetlands. In the past 5 years, money for flood control
projects in Louisiana has been cut dramatically. During that time, two simulations, one of a
category 4 hurricane and one of a category 5 hurricane, indicated catastrophic damage and loss
of life along the Gulf Coast. The levees were predicted to break, and massive flooding to occur,
in part due to the loss of the sheltering wetlands.
1) In the United States, wetlands are primarily considered to be ________.
A) important because they provide many valuable ecosystem services
B) useful to develop for economic purposes
C) important only for recreational purposes
D) belonging to the owner of the private property, to be developed or not by the owner
E) useful for fisheries
2) Wetlands in the United States ________.
A) have increased due to human development
B) have increased due to natural causes, such as floods and hurricanes
C) have decreased due to natural causes, such as floods and hurricanes
D) have decreased due to human development
E) have stayed about the same over the past 40 years
3) There has been legislation designed to encourage protection of wetlands, ________.
A) and there has been increased funding to implement the proposals
B) and funding levels for implementation of proposals has been steady
C) however, funding for proposals has been slashed to low levels
D) however, funding for proposals is nonexistent
E) and a system of green taxes is in place to fund the needed work
4) Part of the reason for the lack of good flood control in the United States is that ________.
A) money has been tight, and government spending overall has been reduced
B) there has been no long-term planning that showed a need for flood control
C) there is no use spending money for something we cannot control anyway
D) sufficient funding is actually present, but the groups to carry out the work are too
small
E) government spending priorities have shifted, and flood control funds have been cut
5) Local areas and national agencies carry out disaster simulations ________.
A) to figure out how much a disaster will cost
B) to check on the preparedness of the public at large for a disaster
C) to justify to the legislature their need for budget increases
D) because their policies require annual simulations
E) to better plan for a disaster and its results
6) From the scenario above, one conclusion regarding the Gulf Coast damage from the
hurricane season of 2005 is that ________.
A) nothing could have improved the outcome, given the loss of wetlands
B) the majority of the damage was because of the low budget and poor planning over the
past 5 years
C) the budget was sufficient, but the planning failed to estimate the amount of damage
and did not prepare properly
D) the combination of wetland losses and budget cuts was probably responsible for the
outcome
E) no one could have predicted the amount of damage and prepared for it
7) If you were a resident of southern Louisiana in 2009-2012, your most effective political
response, to try to lessen future hurricane damage, might be to ________.
A) consider joining a local PAC focused on wetlands restoration and flood control
B) consider running for public office to change government priorities regarding wetlands
and floods
C) concentrate on identifying the causes of the damage from the 2005 hurricanes so that
damage can be minimized or avoided in the future
D) write proposed legislation for wetlands restoration and flood control and send it to
your elected representatives
E) gather information about the possible solutions to the Gulf Coast damage in 2005
Chapter 7 Answer Key
Graphic
1) D
2) C
3) B
4) A
Matching
1) D
2) B
3) K
4) H
5) I
6) G
Scenario
1) A
2) D
3) C
4) E
5) E
6) D
7) A