Environmental Science: Sustainability and Ecological Footprint Worksheet

Question 1

Define sustainability in your own words. Include both environmental and human needs in your definition.

Accepted Answer

Sustainability means meeting human needs today while protecting natural systems and resources so future generations can meet their needs too.

Question 2

A community uses groundwater faster than rainfall can refill the aquifer. Explain why this is not sustainable.

Accepted Answer

This is not sustainable because the community is using a resource faster than it is naturally replaced. Over time, the aquifer level will drop, which can reduce water availability for people, farms, and ecosystems.

Question 3

List three major categories of human activity that contribute to a person's ecological footprint.

Accepted Answer

Three major categories that contribute to a person's ecological footprint are transportation, food choices, and energy use in the home. Other valid examples include housing size, shopping habits, and waste production.

Question 4

A student drives 20 miles to school each day in a gasoline car. Name two ways the student could reduce the transportation part of their ecological footprint.

Accepted Answer

The student could reduce their transportation footprint by carpooling, taking a bus, biking, walking, using an electric vehicle charged with renewable energy, or attending school remotely when possible.

Question 5

A household uses 900 kilowatt-hours of electricity in one month. If each kilowatt-hour produces 0.4 kilograms of carbon dioxide, how many kilograms of carbon dioxide are produced?

Accepted Answer

The household produces 360 kilograms of carbon dioxide. This is found by multiplying 900 kilowatt-hours by 0.4 kilograms of carbon dioxide per kilowatt-hour.

Question 6

A family replaces old light bulbs and reduces monthly electricity use from 900 kilowatt-hours to 720 kilowatt-hours. What percent decrease in electricity use did they achieve?

Accepted Answer

The family achieved a 20 percent decrease in electricity use. The decrease is 180 kilowatt-hours, and 180 divided by 900 equals 0.20, or 20 percent.

Question 7

Explain how eating more plant-based meals can reduce an ecological footprint.

Accepted Answer

Eating more plant-based meals can reduce an ecological footprint because plant foods often require less land, water, and energy than many animal products. They also usually produce fewer greenhouse gas emissions.

Question 8

A city sends most food scraps to a landfill. Explain one environmental problem this can cause and one sustainable alternative.

Accepted Answer

Food scraps in landfills can produce methane, a greenhouse gas. A more sustainable alternative is composting food scraps, which turns organic waste into soil material and reduces landfill emissions.

Question 9

Two products are available: Product A is cheap, single-use, and wrapped in plastic. Product B costs more, is reusable, and has minimal packaging. Which product is likely more sustainable over time, and why?

Accepted Answer

Product B is likely more sustainable over time because it can be used repeatedly and creates less packaging waste. Even though it costs more at first, it may use fewer resources over its lifetime.

Question 10

A school cafeteria serves 500 lunches per day. If switching to reusable trays prevents 0.03 kilograms of waste per lunch, how much waste is prevented in one 180-day school year?

Accepted Answer

The school prevents 2,700 kilograms of waste in one school year. This is calculated as 500 lunches per day times 0.03 kilograms per lunch times 180 days.

Question 11

Describe the difference between renewable and nonrenewable resources. Give one example of each.

Accepted Answer

Renewable resources can be naturally replaced on a human time scale, such as sunlight or wind. Nonrenewable resources form much more slowly than they are used, such as coal, oil, or natural gas.

Question 12

A town wants to reduce its ecological footprint. Propose one policy related to energy, transportation, or waste, and explain how it would help.

Accepted Answer

One possible policy is to expand public transportation and bike lanes. This would help reduce gasoline use, lower greenhouse gas emissions, and decrease the land and resources needed for car-centered travel.

Environmental Science: Sustainability and Ecological Footprint

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