EXAM 3

DUE: TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 26

• Please turn in your answers via e-mail or BlackBoard.
• Please answer the questions using complete sentences, and be sure to use proper spelling and grammar (worth 10%). The answers must be typed.
• If you have any questions, e-mail me at mike_phillips@ivcc.edu.
• note: Answers that are copied from the book or notes or another student (verbatim or superficially rephrased) will not be accepted. While you should use all the resources avaialble and you may work with other students, the work you submit must be your own work in your own words.

Answer the following questions.

1. Explain why some resources are considered sustainable to use while others are not. (5 pts.)
2. Explain the difference between renewable and non-renewable resources and give an example of each. (5 pts.)
3. Describe three of the primary uses of freshwater. What types of restrictions on water use would have a significant impact on overall freshwater withdrawals? Explain. (10 pts.)
4. Explain the difference between porosity and permeability. (5 pts.)
5. Explain what happens to the water table when a well is pumped. Why does this happen? (5 pts.)
6. Where does your water come from? Describe the source of the water in your home. If you have your own well, describe its location, age, depth, quality, and anything you do to treat the water. If you have city water (or a similar supply system), call the city water department and find out where they get the water, the quality, and what they do to treat it. (5 pts.)
7. Describe two geologic resources that are (or were) extracted in the area near your home. For each: name the resource, describe where it is (or was) mined, the impact of mining, and explain why it is valued. Be specific. (5 pts. each)
   • Resource 1: resource, location, when it was mined, impact, use/value
   • Resource 2: resource, location, when it was mined, impact, use/value
8. Explain why coal is no longer mined in LaSalle County. Under what conditions might mining resume? (5 pts.)
9. Describe two pollution sources near your home (be specific) and how they effect the environment (what does each pollute, what kind of problems does each cause, what is being done about it). You should have one of each. (10 pts.)
   1. Nearby USEPA site
   2. Nearby Leaking Underground Storage Tank site
10. Explain why it is so difficult to remove contamination from groundwater. (5 pts.)
11. Describe where your waste water goes. If you have a septic system, describe its location, age, and anything interesting about it. If you have city sewer (or a similar system), call the city sewer department and find out where the sewage goes and how they treat it. (5 pts.)
12. Describe where your trash goes. If you have a service that collects your trash, where do they take it? Be sure to discuss composting, recycling, and other ways you deal with your household waste. (5 pts.)

Use the letters on the diagram above to answer questions 13-22. (1 pt. each)
note: several of the questions have more than one possible correct answer

13. An unconfined aquifer is:
14. The water table is:
15. An aquiclude is:
16. A confined aquifer is:
17. Recharge occurs at:
18. The vadose zone/zone of aeration/unsaturated zone is:
19. A spring is most likely located at:
20. A perched aquifer/water table is:
21. The aquifer most protected from contamination seeping in at the ground surface is:
22. The aquifer most likely to go dry in the summer is:

HINTS for Questions 6, 7, 9, 11, 12

• You need to figure out where these are in relation to where you live.
• Use your textbook, notes, and reflect on your labs to inform your answer. Be thorough. Show me what you have learned.
• Use what you have learned in class.
• Go outside and look around.
• Call the service provider.
• Use the resources provided here: https://facultyweb.ivcc.edu/mphillips/geology/environmental_research.htm

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last updated: 2024-08-11