The Legal Environment of Business, 8e (Kubasek)
Chapter 22 Environmental Law
1) Which of the following torts was first used in an attempt to regulate pollution?
A) assault
B) intentional infliction of emotional distress
C) nuisance
D) invasion of privacy
2) Omar lives in the vicinity of a coal refinery. The pollutants from the refinery deposit a coat of
soot on everything in the surrounding areas. In order to regulate the pollution from the refinery,
Omar can file an action based on ________.
A) nuisance
B) invasion of privacy
C) inflicted distress
D) assault
3) Nuisance actions are used primarily as a way for plaintiffs to ________.
A) stop pollution entirely
B) recover damages for their losses caused by pollution
C) present the true costs that the polluting behavior is imposing on the community
D) convince the courts to use their authority to move the industries that cause pollution to an
isolated location
4) Negligence actions involving hazardous materials are often difficult to prosecute successfully,
primarily because ________.
A) defenses such as comparative negligence are unavailable
B) they are not as serious as nuisance actions
C) the element of causation is easy to prove
D) many of the pollutants do not cause immediate harm
5) A battery cell manufacturer has been disposing its hazardous wastes into a local water body.
This waste has seeped into the ground water table and contaminated it. Residents in the area have
been falling ill due to water poisoning. The residents can file an action based on ________
against the battery cell manufacturer.
A) nuisance
B) invasion of privacy
C) negligence
D) assault
6) Which of the following is true of negligence actions involving hazardous materials?
A) They are easy to prosecute primarily because many of the pollutants cause immediate harm.
B) By the time the harm occurs, it is often difficult to link the damage to the defendant’s release
of the material.
C) Unlike nuisance actions, negligence actions prevent pollution in the first place.
D) The availability of defenses such as contributory or comparative negligence, as well as
assumption of the risk, helps increase the effectiveness of this tort.
7) Which of the following is the primary method of controlling pollution today?
A) nuisance actions
B) negligence actions
C) incentives to businesses
D) direct regulation
8) Which of the following is true of the emission charges approach?
A) The emission charges approach is simply to charge the polluter a variable fee based on every
unit of pollutant discharged.
B) The firms paying the charges will continue to emit pollutants that will be easy to clean up
with the fees collected.
C) Due to the value of the charge, this approach prevents pollution in the first place.
D) It is difficult to monitor every discharge of the pollutant and calculate the amount for each
unit of the various pollutants.
9) Which of the following is a feature of the marketable discharge permits approach?
A) The government sells a common permit to a polluter to discharge any type of pollutant.
B) Polluters would be encouraged to reduce their emissions because this reduction would enable
them to keep their permits.
C) The government actually limits the total amount of pollution through the permits.
D) The government issues more permits once a certain amount of emissions has been authorized.
10) Technology-forcing standards are set primarily on the basis of ________.
A) environmental concerns
B) health considerations
C) current innovations
D) current technology
11) Which of the following best illustrates a technology-forcing standard set by direct
regulation?
A) a regulation that requires air filters to be set on high instead of low
B) a regulation that requires air filters to be inspected annually
C) a regulation that requires air quality in a city to be at a predetermined level so that the number
of asthma cases will decrease
D) a regulation that requires a factory smokestack to be built above a particular height
12) Which of the following best illustrates a technology-driven standard set by direct regulation?
A) a regulation that requires air filters to be set on high instead of low in order to give out cleaner
air
B) a regulation that requires the contaminants in water to be at a particular level so that it is
potable
C) a regulation that requires air quality in a city to be at a level so that the number of asthma
cases will continue to decrease
D) a regulation that requires the smoke from a factory to be filtered so that it minimizes the
chances of lung disease in children
13) Which of the following is primarily responsible for enforcing environmental regulations?
A) state courts
B) federal courts
C) the Congress
D) administrative agencies
14) A nuisance is an unreasonable interference with someone else’s use and enjoyment of his or
her land.
15) The availability of defenses, such as contributory or comparative negligence, helps improve
the effectiveness of the negligence tort.
16) The primary problem with the government subsidies approach is that when a subsidy is for
less than 100 percent of the cost, the firm that limits its pollutants must still pay the difference
between the actual cost and the subsidy.
17) Technology-forcing standards assume that once standards have been established, the
industries will be forced to develop the technology needed to meet the standards.
18) Technology-driven standards try to achieve the greatest improvements possible with new
levels of technology.
19) Describe the various alternatives to direct regulation and state the problems with each of
them.
20) Like other areas of administrative law, environmental law is primarily made up of
regulations passed by a ________ agency operating under the guidance of ________ mandates.
A) federal; executive
B) state; judicial
C) federal; legislative
D) state; executive
21) The federal agency charged with the responsibility for conducting an integrated, coordinated
attack on all forms of pollution of the environment is the ________.
A) Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
B) Global Environment Facility (GEF)
C) Department of Environmental Management (DEM)
D) Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL)
22) The EPA was created by ________ order in ________ to mount an integrated, coordinated
attack on pollution.
A) legislative; 1953
B) executive; 1973
C) judicial; 1962
D) legislative; 1981
23) The EPA was created in order to address all but which of the following forms of pollution?
A) air
B) water
C) noise
D) solid waste
24) The EPA was created in order to address all but which of the following forms of pollution?
A) pesticides
B) cultural
C) radiation
D) toxic substances
25) Which of the following is the reason for the U.S. Congress placing control of all types of
environmental problems under one agency?
A) The Congress wanted the largest environmental agency to have complete control.
B) The Congress wanted the attack on pollution to be integrated.
C) The Congress wanted to achieve economies of scale.
D) The Congress wanted to increase the flow of scientific knowledge between the environmental
agency and other agencies.
26) The reason for placing control of all types of environmental problems within one agency was
to ensure that the attack on pollution would be ________.
A) subrogated
B) integrated
C) bifurcated
D) multidimensional
27) The Office of ________ takes on the tough responsibility of deciding which polluters will be
taken to court.
A) Compliance
B) Pollution Control
C) Regulatory Enforcement
D) Environment Protection
28) One area of special concern to business managers, especially since 1990, has been the EPA’s
use of ________ sanctions, including incarceration, to enforce environmental laws.
A) quasi-judicial
B) criminal
C) legislative
D) civil
29) Criminal cases involving environmental laws are tried by ________.
A) the Environmental Protection Agency
B) the U.S. Justice Department
C) the House Congressional Subcommittee on Air, Water and Land Pollution
D) state administrative agencies charged with the responsibility of pollution control
30) Since 1994, the EPA has been operating under a policy statement issued to guide its special
agents in their enforcement activities. Under this policy, the agents are to look for “________
environmental harm” and “________ conduct.”
A) discernible; negligent
B) significant; culpable
C) fundamental; reckless
D) measurable; intentional
31) In order to satisfy the EPA’s policy statement mandate to look for ________ conduct, the
EPA looks for a history of repeated violations, concealment of misconduct, falsification of
required records, tampering with monitoring or controlling equipment, and failing to obtain
required licenses or permits.
A) culpable
B) negligent
C) reckless
D) intentional
32) The EPA’s Final Policy on Penalty Reductions encourages firms to engage in environmental
self-________.
A) actualization
B) realization
C) auditing
D) reporting
33) Dexxon Inc. is a petrochemical company. The manager of the company was being
questioned by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) with regard to the factory releasing
criteria pollutants into the atmosphere. He admitted to the EPA that the company had falsified its
financial records and tampered with the monitoring equipment. He also stated that the company
would take suitable measures to correct it. Based on this scenario, the EPA’s Final Policy on
Penalty Reductions encouraged Dexxon Inc. to engage in ________.
A) environmental policy making
B) restricting pollution
C) reducing emission charges
D) environmental self-auditing
34) Which of the following is not a recognized element of a successful environmental auditing
program?
A) explicit senior management support for environmental auditing and the willingness to follow
up on the findings
B) an environmental auditing function independent of audited activities
C) adequate auditor training and staffing
D) a “bottom line” analysis of the proposed auditing program
35) Which of the following is not a recognized element of a successful environmental auditing
program?
A) an explicit audit program, with objectives, scope, resources, and frequency
B) a generational projection of the objectives, strategies, and courses of action of the
Environmental Protection Agency
C) a process that includes specific procedures to promptly prepare candid, clear, and appropriate
written reports on audit findings, corrective actions, and schedules for implementation
D) a process that collects, analyzes, interprets, and documents information sufficient to achieve
audit objectives
36) The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is one of the smallest federal agencies, having
approximately 7,384 employees as of the year 2011.
37) The EPA was created by judicial order in 1962 to mount an integrated, coordinated attack on
pollution in the areas of air, water, solid waste, pesticides, radiation, and toxic substances.
38) The EPA’s Final Policy on Penalty Reductions encourages firms to engage in environmental
self-auditing.
39) List the elements of a successful environmental auditing program.
40) The ________ is regarded by many as the United States’ most influential piece of
environmental legislation.
A) National Environmental Policy Act of 1970
B) Pollution Prevention Act of 1990
C) National Emissions Standards Act of 1965
D) Environmental Quality Improvement Act of 1970
41) What is the primary purpose of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1970?
A) to provide subsidies to environmental agencies
B) to create teams that would oversee the progress of regulatory agencies
C) to reform the process by which regulatory agencies make decisions
D) to define and clarify ambiguous rules and regulations of environmental agencies
42) Title ________ of the National Environmental Policy Act requires the preparation of an
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for every major legislative proposal or agency action that
would have a significant impact on the quality of the human environment.
A) I
B) II
C) III
D) IV
43) Which of the following is a continuing problem under the National Environmental Policy
Act?
A) interpreting what is meant by adverse environmental effects
B) interpreting what is meant by environmental impacts
C) interpreting what is meant by human environment
D) interpreting what is meant by long-term productivity
44) The National Environmental Policy Act of 1970 (NEPA) is regarded by many as the
country’s most influential piece of environmental legislation.
45) An Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is a statement that must be prepared for every
major federal activity that would significantly affect the quality of the human environment.
46) An EIS is required when three elements are present. First, the action in question must be
federal. Second, the proposed activity must be discernible. Finally, the proposed activity must
have a measurable impact on the overall environment.
47) State the threshold considerations required for an Environmental Impact Statement.
48) According to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1970, what must be included in an
Environmental Impact Statement?
49) The purpose of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act is to ensure the ________.
A) quality of water in the waterways
B) quality of the drinking water
C) quality of the water for domestic purposes
D) reduction of hazardous wastes and toxic substances in all water bodies
50) The goals of the 1972 amendments to the Federal Water Pollution Control Act were to be
achieved through a system of ________.
A) levying emission charges only
B) levying emission charges and marketable discharge permits
C) permits and effluent discharge limitations
D) direct regulation
51) Which of the following terms refers to the maximum allowable amounts of pollutants that
can be discharged from a point source within a given time period?
A) point emissions
B) effluent limitations
C) threshold limitations
D) maximum emissions
52) As defined by the Safe Drinking Water Act, a public water system is one that has at least
________ service connections or serves ________ or more persons.
A) 3; 5
B) 9; 12
C) 15; 25
D) 50; 100