Unit 4: Water and Aquatic Food Production
Topic 4.4: Water Pollution Questions
Practice 20 exam-style questions for IB ESS Topic 4.4. Review the question stems below, then unlock the full Question Bank to access markschemes, model answers, and AI grading.
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Define the term eutrophication.
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State the main human activity responsible for increasing ocean acidification.
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A factory discharges wastewater from one outlet pipe into a river. State the type of pollution source.
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State what is meant by a dead zone in water.
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State two nutrients most commonly linked to eutrophication.
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Define the term ocean acidification.
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Give one named example of a persistent organic pollutant (POP).
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Define the term non point source pollution.
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After heavy rain, muddy water flows off many fields into streams across a farming region. State the type of pollution source.
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A river downstream of a town has an increase in E. coli counts after sewage overflows. Identify the most likely type of pollutant.
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State why prevention is usually preferred to cleaning up water pollution.
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Define the term bioaccumulation.
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Define the term biomagnification.
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State which process results in the highest toxin concentration in top predators: bioaccumulation or biomagnification.
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Outline two characteristics of pollutants that commonly biomagnify.
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Define the term diffuse (non-point source) pollution.
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Outline two policy tools governments can use to reduce water pollution.
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Define the term point source pollution.
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Outline two strategies that can reduce nutrient runoff from farmland.
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Table 1 shows ocean pH measurements at one site. Using the data, calculate the change in pH between 1990 and 2020.
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