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Overall conditionsThe end-of-year examination will be sat at a time and date to be set annually by the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority.There will be 15 minutes reading time and 2 hours writing time. VCAA examination rules will apply.The examination will be marked by assessors appointed by the VCAA.Details of these rules are published annually in the VCE and VCAL Administrative Handbook. The examination will contribute 50 per cent to the Study Score.
ContentThe VCE Environmental Science Study Design 2013–2016 is the document used for the development of the examination.Questions will be based on the key knowledge and key skills that underpin the outcomes in Units 3 and 4. Students will be required to apply the knowledge and skills outlined in Units 3 and 4, with the following exceptions.• specificdetailsrelatedtoaselectedthreatenedanimal(Unit3Outcome2)• specificdetailsrelatedtoaselectedpollutant(Unit4Outcome1)• specificdetailsrelatedtoanenvironmentalscienceproject(Unit4Outcome2)Althoughthespecificdetailsrelatedtothethreecasestudiesabovewill not be assessed in the end-of-year examination, they will be assessed by School-assessed Coursework. The application of the following underlying principles related to threatened animals, pollutants and environmental scienceprojectsinprovidedcontextswill be assessed in the end-of-year examination.• threateningprocessesonbiodiversity• characteristicsandmanagementofpollutantsingeneral• generalprinciplesofecologicallysustainabledevelopment• environmentalmanagementstrategiesThe student-selected fossil fuel and non-fossil fuel energy resources are examinable in both School-assessed Coursework and in the end-of-year examination.
FormatThe examination will consist of two sections.Section A will consist of 30 multiple-choice questions worth 1 mark each.Section B will consist of short answer questions and will be worth 90 marks.The examination will be worth 120 marks in total.TherewillbeabalanceofcontentacrossthefourareasofstudyinUnits3and4toreflecttheweightingintheSchool-assessed Coursework.Questions in the examination will not be organised according to areas of study and may cover individual areas of study content in more than one area of study from Unit 3 and Unit 4.The examination will be presented in a question and answer book. Students will be required to provide answers to Section B within the spaces allocated in the question and answer book. The number of lines provided after each question, together with the number of marks allocated, will indicate the appropriate length of the response.
Approved materials and equipmentStudents are permitted to bring into the examination room: pens, pencils, highlighters, erasers, rulers and one scientificcalculator.
Further adviceDuringthe2013–2016accreditationperiodfortheVCE Environmental Science Study Design, examinations will bepreparedaccordingtotheexaminationspecificationsabove.Theexaminationwillassessarepresentativesample of the key knowledge and key skills from Unit 3 and Unit 4. The examinable outcomes are listed on page 27 of the VCE Environmental Science Study Design.The following sample examination questions are intended to demonstrate the format and the types of questions thatteachersandstudentscanexpectonthenewend-of-yearVCEEnvironmentalScienceexamination.The VCAA provides answers to multiple-choice questions. The VCAA does not provide answers for other sections.ThefollowingdocumentsshouldbereferredtoinrelationtotheVCEEnvironmentalScienceexamination.• VCE Environmental Science Study Design 2013–2016• VCAA Bulletin VCE, VCAL and VET
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STUDENT NUMBER Letter
S A M P L E
SUPERVISOR TO ATTACH PROCESSING LABEL HEREVictorian Certificate of Education Year
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCEWritten examination
Day Date Reading time: **.** ** to **.** ** (15 minutes) Writing time: **.** ** to **.** ** (2 hours)
Instructions for Section AAnswerallquestionsinpencilontheanswersheetprovidedformultiple-choicequestions.Choosetheresponsethatiscorrectorthatbest answersthequestion.Acorrectanswerscores1,anincorrectanswerscores0.Markswillnotbedeductedforincorrectanswers.Nomarkswillbegivenifmorethanoneansweriscompletedforanyquestion.
Use the following information to answer Questions 5 and 6.Anengineerisplanningtheelectricitysupplyforanisolatedcity.Shewantstomakethesystemasenergyefficientandenvironmentallyfriendlyaspossible,butheroptionsarelimited.Thetwooptionssheisconsideringareasfollows.Option1:coal-burningpowerstationonacoalfieldapproximately300kmfromthecity,withhigh-voltagetransmissionlinesbetweenthemOption2:dieselpowerstationinthecity,generatingpoweratthedesiredvoltage(250VAC)InOption1,theefficiencyofthevariousstagesintheprocessisasfollows.• efficiencyofthegeneratingplant(coaltoelectricity)–60%• efficiencyofthelong-distance,high-voltagetransmissionlines–90%• efficiencyofthetransformerstoconverthighvoltageto250Vinthecity–90%InOption2,thedieselpowerstationisapproximately60%efficient(oilfueltoelectricity,readytouse).
Use the following information to answer Questions 13–19.Alargeoutletisbeingplannedtoreleasetreatedwaterfromaseweragetreatmentplantintotheocean.Thetreatedwaterisnottoxic,buthasanunpleasantsmellandsocanbeconsideredapollutant.Theoutletfeedsthetreatedwaterintodeepocean,withastrongcurrent,whichspreadsthistreatedwater.
Use the following information to answer Questions 20–24.TheSouthernBent-wingBatisamedium-sizedbatthatstaysincavesduringthedayandhuntsforinsectsinforestsandwetlandsatnight.
Use the following information to answer Questions 26–30.Anoldwaterstoragedamistohaveitsdamwallrepaired.Toaccessthedamwallforrepairs,alargeamountofwaterstoredinthedamneedstobereleasedintoariver.AnEnvironmentalRiskAssessmentisrequiredbeforetheprojectisapproved.
a. Describehowyouwouldusethesesources,eithersinglyorincombination,tomeettheneedsofthiscityinanadequatewayandwithemphasisonsustainability.Youshouldrefertoanysubsidiaryinfrastructurethatwouldbeneeded. 3marks
SECTION B
Instructions for Section BAnswerall questionsinthespacesprovided.Writeusingblackorbluepen.
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October2012 15 ENVSCEXAM(SAMPLE)
SECTION B – Question 1 –continuedTURN OVER
b. Outlinetheadvantagesofusingyournominatedfossilfuelenergysourceinthesystemdescribedinpart a. 3marks
c. Outlinethedisadvantagesofthesystemyouhavesuggestedinpart a.ofyournominatedfossilfuelenergysource. 2marks
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ENVSCEXAM(SAMPLE) 16 October2012
SECTION B –continued
d. Commentontheeconomic,socialandenvironmentalimplicationsofyourchoices. 3marks
e. Areportermakesthefollowingstatement. ‘Non-fossilfuelsarepreferredbecauseallnon-fossilfuelsarerenewable,whileallfossilfuelsare
a. Whydidtheresearcherstakeanumberofmeasurementsofmercuryconcentrationsinsoilsamplesateachsiteratherthanrelyingononesampleateachlocation? 2marks
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October2012 21 ENVSCEXAM(SAMPLE)
SECTION B – Question 3–continuedTURN OVER
b. Referringtotherelevantpropertiesofmercuryandsulfurdioxide,explainwhetheryouwouldexpecttofindone,theotherorbothatthesitemanyyearsaftertheminehasceasedproduction. 3marks
c. Explainwhymercuryintheenvironmentishazardousandlistsomeofitsimpacts. 4marks
d. Byexaminingthedatainthetable,describethemostlikelytransportmechanismsformercurypollutioninthevicinityofthemine(atC,D,EandF)andintheareaaffectedbythemine.Explainwhythedatagivenindicatesthesemechanisms. 4marks
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ENVSCEXAM(SAMPLE) 22 October2012
SECTION B–continued
e. Whenthenewprocessingplantfortheminewasoperating(1950–1969),wouldyouhaveconsidereditapointordiffusesourceformercuryandsulfurdioxide?Explainyouranswers. 2marks
d. Giveareasonwhythesurvivalofthecassowarymaybeimportantforoverallbiodiversity. 2marks
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October2012 25 ENVSCEXAM(SAMPLE)
SECTION B–continuedTURN OVER
e. Fromthedataabove,suggestsomeactionsthatcouldbetakeninthemanagementplantoensurethesurvivalofthecassowary.Relateyoursuggestionstoinformationinthedescriptionabove. 4marks
b. Calculatethemean(average)numberofindividualsperspeciesfortheyears2001and2004. 2marks
2001
2004
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ENVSCEXAM(SAMPLE) 28 October2012
SECTION B–continued
c. CalculateSusan’sindexforeachyear.Showyourworkingclearly. 4marks
2001 2004
Number Difference from mean
Number Difference from mean
Species A
Species B
Species C
Species D
Species E
Total number
Mean
Susan’sindex= Susan’sindex=
2001 2004
d. EvaluatetheusefulnessofSusan’sindexforcomparingspeciesdiversitychangeinhabitats. Inyouranswer,youshouldusethesetsofdataprovidedinbothcasestudies(pages26and27). 4marks
environmentallythanthetunnel.Inparts a., b.andc.,youshouldconsidermakingreferencetoi)economic,ii)socialandii)environmentalfactors–notnecessarilyallthreeineachsubquestion.
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October2012 31 ENVSCEXAM(SAMPLE)
SECTION B – Question 6 – continuedTURN OVER
a. OutlinethekeyargumentsforoptionA. 3marks
b. OutlinethekeyargumentsforoptionB. 3marks
c. Giveyourownevaluationand,hence,recommendationforthedecision-makingcouncil. 2marks
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ENVSCEXAM(SAMPLE) 32 October2012
d. Oneofthegroupsconsultedsaysthatwhicheveroptionischosen,itmustbeshowntobeecologicallysustainable.