Sustainable Design and Environmental Stewardship Flashcards
6 cards from real CLARB practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 6 Sustainable Design and Environmental Stewardship flashcards as text
Under the Clean Water Act Section 404, what activity on a CLARB project site would require a permit from the US Army Corps of Engineers?
Answer: Discharge of dredged or fill material into waters of the United States, including wetlands
Section 404 requires a USACE permit for any discharge of fill material into jurisdictional waters of the US, including wetlands, streams, and other water bodies.
What is the purpose of a Phase I Environmental Site Assessment (ESA) at the start of a landscape architecture project?
Answer: To identify potential or existing environmental contamination liabilities on a property through records review and site inspection
A Phase I ESA is a due diligence process that reviews historical site use, regulatory records, and site conditions to identify recognized environmental conditions (RECs) before project development.
Which metric is used in LEED Sustainable Sites credits to measure the ecological impact of a development compared to predevelopment conditions?
Answer: The percentage of the site restored to or maintained as habitat, and the reduction in site disturbance footprint
LEED SS credits evaluate the proportion of the site that protects or restores habitat relative to the total disturbed area, rewarding minimized development footprint and ecological restoration.
A site design incorporates a 'living wall' (vertical green wall) on a south-facing building facade. What is the primary sustainability benefit?
Answer: Reducing solar heat gain on the building surface, lowering cooling loads and mitigating urban heat island effect
Vegetated walls insulate building surfaces, reduce surface temperatures through evapotranspiration, and lower cooling energy demand while contributing to urban heat island mitigation.
What is the primary purpose of calculating a site's 'runoff curve number (CN)' in stormwater design?
Answer: To estimate the volume and rate of stormwater runoff based on land cover, soil type, and rainfall depth
The NRCS curve number method uses CN values reflecting soil type and land cover to calculate direct runoff from rainfall events for stormwater facility sizing.
Which federal executive order most directly requires federal agencies to consider environmental justice in their decision-making and project review processes?
Answer: Executive Order 12898 — Federal Actions to Address Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations
EO 12898 requires federal agencies to identify and address disproportionately high adverse environmental and health effects of their actions on minority and low-income populations.