Learn Extracted exam questions AP Environmental Science 2022 Free Response · Set 2
2022 Free Response · Set 2
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The dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico occurs every summer when winter snow melts and spring rain flows into the Mississippi River. Recent studies have shown that both the total area covered by algae and the depth of the algal mass in the dead zone are increasing.
[Map titled "LAND USE WITHIN THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER WATERSHED": a map of the continental United States showing the Mississippi River watershed shaded by land use type, with the Gulf of Mexico labeled at the bottom. A point labeled "X" is marked in the upper-central part of the watershed (near the Great Lakes region), connected by a line from the map. Legend "Land Use": Forest (dark gray shading), Grassland (light gray shading), Agriculture/cropland (dotted/stippled shading), Urban (solid black shading, scattered small patches throughout the watershed, especially clustered in the east and around the Great Lakes).]
Various land use practices can have different effects on the waters that surround a dead zone.
Identify the land use that covers the least amount of area in the Mississippi River watershed, based on the diagram.
Describe one way that the land use practice at location X in the diagram could contribute to the dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico.
Describe one way that urban areas in the Mississippi River watershed could contribute to the dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico.
The dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico has both economic and environmental effects for coastal communities.
Describe how a dead zone affects marine organisms living in the Gulf of Mexico.
Describe one economic effect on communities along the Gulf of Mexico that can result from the presence of the dead zone.
Describe one factor that causes the area of the dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico to increase in the summer months.
Researchers want to examine the effect of riparian vegetation buffers on water quality in streams in agricultural areas. Researchers will measure the water nutrient concentrations over the course of one year. The study sites are located 100 meters downstream from areas either with or without riparian vegetation buffers.
Identify a testable hypothesis for the study.
Describe a control that the researchers could use in the study.
Identify one water quality test, other than measuring nitrates or phosphates, that the researchers could use to evaluate how riparian vegetation buffers affect water quality.
During the investigation, researchers discovered that some of the land next to one of the streams with a riparian vegetation buffer is going to be converted from cornfields into a large-scale concentrated animal feeding operation. Explain one way that this change in land use could alter the results of the study.
Biologists collected data on the abundance of lizards on several Pacific islands with and without mongoose populations. The surveys were conducted at different locations on the islands by counting the number of lizards observed per hour and included habitats with both undisturbed areas and anthropogenically disturbed areas.
[Scatter/line graph titled "LIZARD NUMBERS ON PACIFIC ISLANDS". Y-axis: "Lizards Counted per Hour", logarithmic scale from $10^0$ to $10^3$. X-axis: "Habitat Types", with categories in order from "Undisturbed" to "Highly disturbed": Primary Forest, Secondary Forest, Clearings, Gardens, Sugarcane Fields, Hotels, Parks, and Walking Trails. Two data series with individual data points and a smoothed trend curve for each: "Mongoose-free islands" (filled circles, solid curve) and "Mongoose-present islands" (open squares, dashed curve). Both curves rise from Primary Forest, peak around Clearings, Gardens (mongoose-free peak ≈ 50 lizards/hour; mongoose-present peak ≈ 10 lizards/hour), then decline toward Hotels, Parks, and Walking Trails (mongoose-free ≈ 15 lizards/hour; mongoose-present ≈ 3 lizards/hour). At every habitat type, the mongoose-free (solid) curve lies above the mongoose-present (dashed) curve.]
The graph shows data collected by biologists on lizard numbers on several Pacific islands.
Based on the data in the graph, identify the habitat type with the greatest number of lizards.
Based on the data in the graph, describe the relationship between the lizard numbers observed on islands with and without mongoose populations.
Globally, islands vary in size, location, and habitat.
Based on the theory of island biogeography, describe the characteristics of an island with the greatest species diversity.
Island ecosystems are often threatened by invasive species, such as the mongoose populations studied in the survey.
Describe one environmental problem caused by invasive animal species.
Invasive species are often pests. Make a claim that proposes one way to control pest species.
Justify the solution proposed in (c)(ii) by providing an additional benefit of the solution.
Islands provide humans with many ecosystem services. However, humans may alter ecosystems when they obtain these services. Large-scale commercial sugarcane farming on the Pacific islands has led to significant ecological damage.
Identify a provisioning ecosystem service provided by primary forests.
Based on the data in the graph, explain how replacing primary forests with sugarcane fields may have affected the number of lizards counted on the mongoose-free Pacific islands.
The long-term use of monocultures in commercial sugarcane farming is one cause of the ecological damage. Describe one problem associated with monocultures.
One solution to the ecological damage of monocultures is to use a form of crop rotation using legumes.
Describe an advantage of crop rotation using legumes on soil fertility.
North Carolina is one of the fastest-growing states by population in the United States, with most growth concentrated in major cities like Charlotte. Increased population leads to increased demands for resources such as power and water.
The majority of electrical energy in North Carolina is produced during the combustion of coal.
Identify one negative human health effect linked to the exposure to pollutants resulting from the combustion of coal.
Coal ash, the powdery, solid substance that remains after coal combustion, presents a variety of potential environmental issues. Disposal of toxic coal ash is a growing concern in the state. Coal ash can be mixed with water and disposed of in large, unlined pits or as dry ash in landfills.
Describe an environmental problem associated with coal ash waste disposal.
A proposed solution is to dispose of North Carolina's coal ash in clay-lined pits. Justify this solution by providing one advantage of using clay soil.
The population of Charlotte, North Carolina, has grown over the last few decades. The table shows the increase in the population size of Charlotte from 2013 to 2019.
Population of Charlotte, North Carolina, 2013–2019
| Year | Population |
|---|---|
| 2013 | 757,278 |
| 2014 | 774,807 |
| 2015 | 792,137 |
| 2016 | 808,834 |
| 2017 | 826,060 |
| 2018 | 841,611 |
| 2019 | 857,425 |
Calculate the percent change in Charlotte's population from 2013 to 2019. Show your work.
Based on Charlotte's 2019 growth rate of $1.88\%$, calculate the year when the population of Charlotte will double, assuming the growth rate stays the same. Show your work.
The average Charlotte resident uses 90 gallons of water per day. Calculate the gallons of water used by the population of Charlotte in the year 2018. Show your work.
Drought periods are becoming more frequent in North Carolina, causing water resources to become more scarce. Describe one realistic action that citizens could take to reduce domestic outdoor water use.