CESSWI Exam | Questions & correct
Answers| Latest 2026/ 2027 Update | Grade A
(100% Correct) Verified Elaborations
1. What are the soil classifications based off of? Percent of sand, silt, and
clay present in soil
2. How many soil texture classifications are there? 12
3. What are the hydrologic soil groups classified based off of? Infiltration
rates
4. What are the hydrologic soil groups? A, B, C, D
5. What are the soil horizons classified based off of? Primary material (eg
clay, organic matter, minerals, parent material (rock), bedrock)
6. What are the master horizons? O, A, E, B, C, R
7. What are the four types of erosion? Raindrop, sheet, rill & gully,
streambank
8. Define soil detachment the dislodgment of soil particles from the soil mass
through erosive forces
9. Define sediment transport the movement of sediment particles (by water or
wind) once they have been detached
10.Define erosion the weathering down of parent material and the detachment
by the action of wind, water, ice and gravity
11.What is the erosion rate of soil for a site by water dependent on? on-site
characteristics, soil physical and chemical variables, and land management
practices
1
,12.What is sediment deposition (sedimentation)? the process by which soil
particles that have been suspended within the water or air column settle back
to the ground surface
13.What equation is used to estimate the annual average erosion rate for a
site? RUSLE
14.Brain Break! (answer a question completely unrelated to stormwater)
What is the largest desert in the world? Antarctica Desert (don't believe
me? google it!)
15.What can sedimentation be a result of? reduced flow rates/flow velocities,
higher frictional forces, increased sediment load within runoff
16.Site characteristics that directly impact the likelihood for soils to erode:
soil type, vegetative cover, topography, climate
17.Define hydrology the study of water, including its occurrence, circulation,
distribution, chemical and physical properties, and the reaction of those
properties to the environment
18.Parameters that characterize the hydrology of a site include;
precipitation, evaporation, infiltration, runoff
19.The hydrologic cycle describes the movement of water... above the
surface, on the surface, and below the surface
20.The hydrologic cycle is a... continuous process (no start or end)
21.Water will exist in all 3 states: vapor, liquid, solid
22.Define watershed (NOAA def): a land area that channels rainfall and
snowmelt to creeks, streams, and rivers, and eventually to outflow points
such as reservoirs, bays, and the ocean
23.A specified rainfall depth over a specified duration design storm
2
, 24.A land area that channels rainfall and snowmelt to creeks, streams, and
rivers, and eventually to outflow points such as reservoirs, bays, and the
ocean watershed
25.Define slope slope/gradients is defined as a number, typically a %, that
describes the direction and steepness of a surface
26.Typical method of slope calculation rise over run ( slope% = rise/run ) *to
convert the decimal to a whole number, multiply the slope % by one
hundred
27.Other ways of expressing slope include... slope degrees & slope ratios
28.Slope degrees look at the angle of the slope using a protractor with 90
degrees being completely vertical and 0 degrees being completely
horizontal. A 45 degree slope is one (1) horizontal unit to (1) vertical unit.
29.Slope ratios provides the slope in horizontal units to vertical units. For
instance, a three (3) ft horiz. run with a one (1) ft vert. change would be
expressed as a 3:1 slope.
30.Hydrology is the study of fluids, including both fluids in motion and
fluids at rest. Hydrology
31.Open channel flow is... concentrated flow within a defined cross-section
when the surface of the water is exposed to the atmosphere (eg channels,
canals, streams).
32.When designing a culvert and drainage system, a designer should
ensure that the downstream conveyance feature... has the capacity to
convey the pipe flows without overtopping or causing erosion.
33.Flow control options include... weir flow, orifice flow
34.Brain Break! (answer a question completely unrelated to stormwater)
When did many US schools stop teaching cursive? 2010 (stupid Common
Core)
3
Answers| Latest 2026/ 2027 Update | Grade A
(100% Correct) Verified Elaborations
1. What are the soil classifications based off of? Percent of sand, silt, and
clay present in soil
2. How many soil texture classifications are there? 12
3. What are the hydrologic soil groups classified based off of? Infiltration
rates
4. What are the hydrologic soil groups? A, B, C, D
5. What are the soil horizons classified based off of? Primary material (eg
clay, organic matter, minerals, parent material (rock), bedrock)
6. What are the master horizons? O, A, E, B, C, R
7. What are the four types of erosion? Raindrop, sheet, rill & gully,
streambank
8. Define soil detachment the dislodgment of soil particles from the soil mass
through erosive forces
9. Define sediment transport the movement of sediment particles (by water or
wind) once they have been detached
10.Define erosion the weathering down of parent material and the detachment
by the action of wind, water, ice and gravity
11.What is the erosion rate of soil for a site by water dependent on? on-site
characteristics, soil physical and chemical variables, and land management
practices
1
,12.What is sediment deposition (sedimentation)? the process by which soil
particles that have been suspended within the water or air column settle back
to the ground surface
13.What equation is used to estimate the annual average erosion rate for a
site? RUSLE
14.Brain Break! (answer a question completely unrelated to stormwater)
What is the largest desert in the world? Antarctica Desert (don't believe
me? google it!)
15.What can sedimentation be a result of? reduced flow rates/flow velocities,
higher frictional forces, increased sediment load within runoff
16.Site characteristics that directly impact the likelihood for soils to erode:
soil type, vegetative cover, topography, climate
17.Define hydrology the study of water, including its occurrence, circulation,
distribution, chemical and physical properties, and the reaction of those
properties to the environment
18.Parameters that characterize the hydrology of a site include;
precipitation, evaporation, infiltration, runoff
19.The hydrologic cycle describes the movement of water... above the
surface, on the surface, and below the surface
20.The hydrologic cycle is a... continuous process (no start or end)
21.Water will exist in all 3 states: vapor, liquid, solid
22.Define watershed (NOAA def): a land area that channels rainfall and
snowmelt to creeks, streams, and rivers, and eventually to outflow points
such as reservoirs, bays, and the ocean
23.A specified rainfall depth over a specified duration design storm
2
, 24.A land area that channels rainfall and snowmelt to creeks, streams, and
rivers, and eventually to outflow points such as reservoirs, bays, and the
ocean watershed
25.Define slope slope/gradients is defined as a number, typically a %, that
describes the direction and steepness of a surface
26.Typical method of slope calculation rise over run ( slope% = rise/run ) *to
convert the decimal to a whole number, multiply the slope % by one
hundred
27.Other ways of expressing slope include... slope degrees & slope ratios
28.Slope degrees look at the angle of the slope using a protractor with 90
degrees being completely vertical and 0 degrees being completely
horizontal. A 45 degree slope is one (1) horizontal unit to (1) vertical unit.
29.Slope ratios provides the slope in horizontal units to vertical units. For
instance, a three (3) ft horiz. run with a one (1) ft vert. change would be
expressed as a 3:1 slope.
30.Hydrology is the study of fluids, including both fluids in motion and
fluids at rest. Hydrology
31.Open channel flow is... concentrated flow within a defined cross-section
when the surface of the water is exposed to the atmosphere (eg channels,
canals, streams).
32.When designing a culvert and drainage system, a designer should
ensure that the downstream conveyance feature... has the capacity to
convey the pipe flows without overtopping or causing erosion.
33.Flow control options include... weir flow, orifice flow
34.Brain Break! (answer a question completely unrelated to stormwater)
When did many US schools stop teaching cursive? 2010 (stupid Common
Core)
3
