REAC Qualifying Exam flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Polluter-pays principle

The party responsible for causing pollution bears the cost of preventing, investigating, and remediating it, regardless of who currently owns the land or asset.

Best Available Techniques

The most effective and advanced stage of development in processes and operation methods, considering cost-benefit, that limits emissions and environmental impact.

Cradle-to-grave responsibility

Waste generators remain responsible for their waste from production through transport, treatment, and final disposal; downstream failure can return liability to the generator.

Statutory nuisance

A legal claim that unreasonable interference with land use causes harm; permit compliance does not automatically prevent a nuisance action being brought.

Notifiable incident reporting

Regulated events require prompt verbal notification and a written follow-up within a set period; failure to report is itself a breach.

Risk equation

Risk is the product of hazard and exposure. A hazard with no exposure pathway to a receptor presents no risk.

Source-pathway-receptor model

A risk exists only when a contaminant source is linked via a pathway to a receptor; breaking any link prevents exposure.

Conceptual site model

A documented representation of sources, pathways, receptors, and exposure linkages at a site; it defines what sampling and assessment must cover.

Screening versus detailed assessment

Screening compares site data to generic criteria; exceedance triggers site-specific detailed assessment using actual exposure parameters and toxicity values.

ALARP principle

Risk should be reduced as low as reasonably practicable, balancing risk reduction against cost and effort; zero risk is not the standard.

Environmental impact assessment stages

Screening, scoping, baseline description, impact prediction, mitigation design, reporting, and post-decision monitoring, including cumulative and transboundary effects.

Representativeness

The degree to which a sample reflects the true conditions of the population or area sampled; precise analysis of a non-representative sample remains invalid.

Grab versus composite sample

A grab sample captures conditions at one time and place; a composite averages over time or space and can mask peak concentrations.

Holding time

The maximum permitted interval between sample collection and analysis for a given analyte, beyond which results may be invalidated regardless of analysis quality.

Field blank

A clean sample carried through collection, transport, and analysis to detect contamination introduced during field handling rather than from the site.

Chain of custody

An unbroken documented record of sample possession, with names, dates, times, and signatures, supporting the admissibility and integrity of results.

Data quality objectives

Predefined statements of the decision to be made, the acceptable error rate, and the data needed, set before sampling begins.

Precision versus accuracy

Precision is reproducibility among replicate measurements; accuracy is closeness to the true value. A method can be precise but biased.

Relative percent difference

RPD = |a - b| divided by the mean of a and b, multiplied by 100; used to compare duplicate results against an acceptance criterion.

Percent recovery

Percent recovery equals measured concentration divided by expected concentration, multiplied by 100; assesses bias using spikes or reference materials.

Limit of detection

The lowest concentration distinguishable from zero with stated confidence; distinct from the limit of quantification, where acceptable precision is achieved.

Matrix spike

A sample aliquot fortified with a known amount of analyte to assess recovery in the actual sample matrix, revealing matrix interference effects.

Measurement uncertainty

A quantified range around a result expressing doubt about its value; decision-making against limits should account for it.

Laboratory accreditation

Independent confirmation that a laboratory meets a competence standard such as ISO/IEC 17025; it does not guarantee any individual result is correct.

Report essential elements

Purpose, scope, methods, results, limitations, and conclusions, presented so an independent reader could reproduce and interpret the work.

Reference conditions in reporting

Results must state temperature, pressure, and dry or wet basis, because concentrations vary with these conditions and are not interchangeable.

Data qualifiers

Codes attached to results, such as estimated or non-detect, with a legend, indicating validation status and how the value should be used.

Exceedance reporting content

Identify the limit, measured value, duration, and corrective action taken; state whether the result is confirmed or provisional.

Version control

Each revision carries date, author, reviewer, and approval, with superseded versions clearly marked so readers use the current document.

Conflict of interest disclosure

Any financial or personal interest that could bias judgement must be disclosed in writing and managed, or the work declined.

Competence boundary

Practitioners must decline or qualify work beyond their expertise rather than overstate capability, and should refer to a qualified specialist.

Independence in assessment

Those who prepare an assessment should not be the sole verifiers of it; separating preparation from review preserves objectivity.