CEI CEI Hazardous Materials & Remediation 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which federal law primarily governs the cleanup of uncontrolled hazardous waste sites in the United States?
- RCRA
- CERCLA (Correct answer)
- TSCA
- FIFRA
Correct answer: CERCLA
CERCLA (Superfund) authorizes federal cleanup of uncontrolled hazardous waste sites and establishes liability for responsible parties.
Question 2: What does the term 'NAPL' refer to in environmental remediation?
- Non-Aqueous Phase Liquid (Correct answer)
- Natural Aquifer Protection Layer
- Nitrate Accumulation in Porous Layers
- Non-Aerated Pollutant Level
Correct answer: Non-Aqueous Phase Liquid
NAPL (Non-Aqueous Phase Liquid) refers to organic liquids that do not readily dissolve in water and are commonly found as subsurface contaminants.
Question 3: Which personal protective equipment (PPE) level provides the highest degree of respiratory and skin protection at a hazardous site?
- Level B
- Level C
- Level D
- Level A (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Level A
Level A PPE includes a fully encapsulating chemical protective suit with SCBA and is required when the highest level of respiratory and skin protection is needed.
Question 4: What is the primary purpose of a Remedial Investigation/Feasibility Study (RI/FS) under CERCLA?
- To determine who is legally responsible for cleanup costs
- To characterize site conditions and evaluate cleanup alternatives (Correct answer)
- To issue fines to polluters
- To close a hazardous waste site permanently
Correct answer: To characterize site conditions and evaluate cleanup alternatives
An RI/FS characterizes the nature and extent of contamination and evaluates potential cleanup alternatives to support remedy selection.
Question 5: Which type of soil remediation technology uses electrical current to move contaminants through saturated soil toward electrodes for removal?
- Bioremediation
- Electrokinetic remediation (Correct answer)
- Phytoremediation
- Air sparging
Correct answer: Electrokinetic remediation
Electrokinetic remediation applies low-level direct current to move ionic contaminants and water through low-permeability soils toward extraction electrodes.
Question 6: What is the correct definition of 'source control' in the context of hazardous site remediation?
- Preventing contaminants from migrating away from the primary release area (Correct answer)
- Identifying the original polluter responsible for contamination
- Monitoring downstream water quality after cleanup
- Removing contaminated vegetation from a site
Correct answer: Preventing contaminants from migrating away from the primary release area
Source control measures prevent contaminants at the primary release area from spreading further into the environment via migration pathways.
CEI CEI Hazardous Materials & Remediation 1
Which federal law primarily governs the cleanup of uncontrolled hazardous waste sites in the United States?