CPCB Scientist B flashcards

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

NAAQS PM2.5 annual limit

National Ambient Air Quality Standard for PM2.5 is 40 µg/m3 annual and 60 µg/m3 for 24-hour average, notified in 2009 under the Air Act.

Air Quality Index categories

AQI uses eight pollutants; the maximum sub-index defines the AQI category: Good 0-50, Satisfactory 51-100, Moderate 101-200, Poor 201-300, Very Poor 301-400, Severe above 400.

Effective stack height

Effective stack height equals physical stack height plus plume rise (Briggs formula). Ground-level concentration depends on this effective height and dispersion coefficients.

Designated best use Class A

Class A water is drinking water source after disinfection; requires dissolved oxygen at least 6 mg/L and BOD at most 2 mg/L under CPCB classification.

Section 24 Water Act

Section 24 of the Water Act, 1974 prohibits discharge of sewage or effluent into streams or wells without consent from the State Pollution Control Board.

BOD first-order kinetics

BOD exertion follows BODt = BODu (1 − e^(−kt)); at 20 °C, k is about 0.23 per day base e, giving roughly 68% exertion at five days.

Water Quality Index weights

CPCB WQI uses nine parameters; DO, BOD, COD, faecal coliform, total coliform and ammoniacal nitrogen each carry weight 0.16 or 0.17; phosphate and nitrate carry 0.08.

Ambient noise residential limits

Noise Rules 2000 set residential ambient limits at 55 dB(A) daytime (6-22 h) and 45 dB(A) nighttime (22-6 h) as Leq over the period.

Silence zone definition

A silence zone is an area within 100 m of hospitals, schools, courts and religious places; ambient limits are 50 dB(A) day and 40 dB(A) night.

Noise addition rule

Adding two equal sound sources increases the sound level by 3 dB; doubling distance from a point source reduces the level by about 6 dB.

Bio-medical yellow category

Yellow-coded biomedical waste includes human and animal anatomical waste, soiled waste, expired medicines and chemical waste; it is incinerated or deep-buried per rules.

Plastic carry bag thickness

Plastic Waste Management Rules require carry bags of at least 120 microns thickness from 31 December 2022, and ban listed single-use plastics from 1 July 2022.

E-Waste Rules 2022 EPR

E-Waste (Management) Rules, 2022 require producers to register on the CPCB portal and meet annual recycling targets through tradable EPR certificates.

Hazardous waste manifest

Hazardous and Other Wastes Rules, 2016 require a six-copy manifest tracking waste from generator to transporter to TSDF, with returns to each party.

C&D waste segregation

Construction and Demolition Waste Rules, 2016 require generators to segregate waste and send it to authorised processing facilities, not to open dumps.

Environmental compensation formula

CPCB levies EC = PI × N × R × F, where PI is pollution index, N days of violation, R base rate and F severity factor, under Section 5 of the EP Act.

Red category industry

Red category industries have the highest pollution potential under CPCB categorisation; they face stricter consent conditions, frequent monitoring and higher EC rates.

Consent to establish

Consent to establish (CTE) is granted by SPCBs before construction begins; consent to operate (CTO) is required before commissioning and production start.

CEPI threshold

Comprehensive Environmental Pollution Index above 70 denotes a critically polluted area; 60-70 is severely polluted; 50-60 is very polluted.

Polluted river stretch priority

CPCB categorises polluted stretches by BOD: Priority I above 30 mg/L, II 20-30, III 10-20, IV 6-10, V 3-6 mg/L.

EIA category A project

Category A projects under EIA Notification 2006 are appraised by the Expert Appraisal Committee at MoEFCC; Category B projects go to SEIAA and SEAC.

National Clean Air Programme

NCAP (2019) targets reduction of PM10 in non-attainment cities, with city action plans covering source apportionment, monitoring and control measures.

NGT Act jurisdiction

National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 gives NGT civil jurisdiction over environmental laws in Schedule I; appeals lie to the Supreme Court within 90 days.

EP Act Section 5

Section 5 of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 empowers the Central Government to issue directions, including closure, prohibition and regulation of industry.

EIA clearance validity

Environmental clearance under EIA Notification 2006 is valid for 10 years for mining projects and 5-10 years for other projects, extendable by the regulator.

EP Rules Schedule VI

Schedule VI of the Environment (Protection) Rules, 1986 sets general effluent discharge standards: pH 5.5-9.0, BOD 30 mg/L, COD 250 mg/L, TSS 100 mg/L.

NABL ISO/IEC 17025

Laboratories are accredited to ISO/IEC 17025:2017 by NABL; quality control covers blanks, duplicates, spikes, calibration verification and control charts.

Method detection limit

MDL is commonly estimated as three times the standard deviation of seven replicate blank measurements, and reporting limits must fall below regulatory standards.

PM2.5 gravimetric sampling

PM2.5 gravimetric sampling uses 47 mm PTFE filters at 16.7 L/min; filters are conditioned and weighed before and after sampling under controlled temperature and humidity.

COD closed reflux method

COD is measured by closed reflux dichromate digestion (APHA 5220); mercury sulphate masks chloride interference, and absorbance is read at 600 nm.

Noise measurement position

Noise is measured with a Type 1 or Type 2 sound level meter, A-weighted, slow response, 1-1.5 m above ground and at least 3 m from reflecting surfaces.

Sample preservation for metals

Water samples for metal analysis are preserved with nitric acid to pH below 2 and cooled to 4 °C; BOD and microbiological samples are chilled without acidification.