Green Glossary – M
- Magnetic Separation
- Use of magnets to separate ferrous materials from mixed municipal waste stream.
- Maintained Engineered Cover
- Vegetated cover, usually made of compacted clean soil placed over a hazardous waste source at its closure.
- Malaria
- A life-threatening disease caused by parasites that are transmitted to humans through bites of infected mosquitoes.
- Malthusian
- Describes the theories of British economist Thomas Robert Malthus (1766-1834), who argued that population tends to increase faster than food supply, with inevitably disastrous results, unless the increase in population is checked by moral restraints or by war, famine, and disease.
- Managed Growth
- Development or expansion of a specific area or community that is controlled so as not to be harmful. Managed growth is a concept whose underlying principle is that sustainable human society should be bounded by social and ecosystem limits.
- Mandatory Recycling
- Programs which by law require consumers to separate trash so that some or all recyclable materials are recovered for recycling rather than going to landfills.
- Manganese
- A naturally occurring metal that is found in many types of rocks. Pure manganese is silver-colored, but does not occur naturally. It combines with other substances such as oxygen, sulfur, or chlorine.
- Mangrove
- A cluster of trees and shrubs that grow along tropical and sub-tropical coasts in salty ocean water. Their extensive root systems provide a breeding ground for plant and marinelife biodiversity, and also aid in building up coastlines.
- Manifest
- A one-page form used by haulers transporting waste that lists EPA identification numbers, type and quantity of waste, the generator it originated from, the transporter that shipped it, and the storage or disposal facility to which it is being shipped. It includes copies for all participants in the shipping process.
- Manure Degrader
- Formulation used by farmers containing strains of beneficial bacteria that break down organic waste build up, converting them into liquid slurry that can easily be pumped up and collected.
- Marine Conservation
- A systematic effort to protect the earth's oceans and marine life. The demands of a growing human population are damaging marine ecosystems and depleting ocean and coastal resources.
- Marine Protected Area or MPA
- A marine environment that has been reserved by federal, state, territorial, tribal, or local laws to provide lasting protection for its natural resources.
- Marine Reserve
- A discrete area of the marine environment in which, at a minimum, extractive activities such as fishing, mining, and shell collecting are restricted or prohibited.
- MARPOL 73/78
- The most significant convention regulating and preventing marine pollution under the International Maritime Organization's International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships.
- Marsh
- Freshwater or marine wetland ecosystems characterized by poorly drained mineral soils and by plant life dominated by grasses.
- Mass Burn Facility
- A facility that processes municipal solid waste through incineration or waste-to-energy conversion.
- Material Data Safety Sheet or MSDS
- A Material Safety Data Sheet or MSDS compiles information on the presence of chemical, physical and health hazards of a certain substance or material.
- Material Flow Analysis
- An aspect of industrial ecology that examines and analyzes the use of a material within a defined system.
- Materials Recovery Facility (MRF)
- A facility that processes residentially collected mixed recyclables into new products available for market.
- Mechanical Containment
- The most common type of equipment for mechanical containment of oil following a spill, such as floating barriers, different types of booms, and skimmers.
- Median Lethal Dose or LD50
- In toxicology, median lethal dose or Lethal Dose 50% (LD50) is the amount of radiation or any other toxic substance that can kill half the members of a test population.
- Medical Waste
- Garbage produced by health facilities and hospitals which include a wide range of materials--from used syringes and needles, soiled dressings, blood, chemicals to human or animal body parts. Medical waste must be managed properly as it also includes drugs, radioactive materials and toxic chemicals.
- Megacity
- A city with an estimated population of more than ten million people. Megacities are the largest urban populations in the world and some have significant air pollution problems.
- Megalopolis
- A large city expanding so fast that city government cannot adjust to provide services--such as waste disposal, traffic calming or pollution control.
- Megawatt
- Megawatt is a unit of electricity, equivalent to 1000 kilowatts or 1 million watts of power generated.
- Methane
- A colorless, nonpoisonous, flammable gas created by anaerobic decomposition of organic compounds. A major component of natural gas used in the home.
- Methanol
- An alcohol that can be used as an alternative fuel or as a gasoline additive.
- Methyl Bromide
- The gaseous compound CH3Br used primarily as an insect fumigant but is now considered a pollutant.
- Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether or MTBE
- A fuel additive derived from the chemical reaction of methanol and isobutylene. It is one of a group of chemicals commonly known as "oxygenates" because they raise the oxygen content of gasoline.
- Microbiota
- Refers to the microflora and microfauna in an ecosystem, usually an animal host or a part of its body, such as intestines, mouth, etc.
- Microclimate
- The weather conditions within a small, specific location, as opposed to the climate of the entire, bigger area it lies within.
- Micropollutants
- Particles and sediments that exist in very small traces in water, particularly in freshwater systems contaminated by industrial and chemical compounds.
- Midden
- A pit in which trash or garbage is buried, usually only organic garbage.
- Mill Broke
- Waste paper produced by mills during the paper making process that has traditionally been reused in manufacturing paper.
- Minimal Risk Level
- An estimate of the acceptable daily human exposure to a hazardous substance--likely to be without significant adverse effects, or to be cancerous over a specified duration of exposure.
- Minimum Recycled Content Laws
- Laws requiring a product or type of packaging to contain a certain percentage of recycled material.
- Mining
- The process of extracting minerals, metals and other geological resources from the ground. Some materials that are mined are limestone, oil shale, diamonds, uranium, coal and iron.
- Mixed Metals
- Recovered metals not sorted into categories such as aluminum, tin, or steel cans or ferrous or non-ferrous metals.
- Mixed Municipal Waste
- Solid waste that has not been sorted into specific categories (such as plastic, glass, yard trimmings, etc.)
- Mixed Paper
- Recovered paper not sorted into categories such as old magazines, old newspapers, old corrugated boxes, etc.
- Mold Spores
- Molds are a type of fungus and mold spores are their airborne particles that contribute to indoor air pollution.
- Molds
- Molds are a type of fungi that thrive in moist environments.
- Monomer Recycling
- A type of plastic recycling method, it involves condensing polymers within the plastic so that it can undergo reverse polymerization.
- Montreal Protocol
- Concerning substances that deplete the ozone layer, The Montreal Protocol is an international agreement entered into force in January 1989 to phase out the use of ozone-depleting substances such as methyl chloroform, carbon tetrachloride, and CFCs.
- Mousse
- A thick, foamy oil-and-water mixture formed when petroleum products are subjected to mixing with water by the action of waves and wind.
- Mulch
- Mulch is any material applied over soil that is meant to protect or improve the soil area covered.
- Mulch Toxicity
- Mulch is used to benefit plants and soil, but sometimes "sour" or "acid" mulch can damage plant tissue and lower soil pH levels.
- Mulching
- The natural and gradual decomposition of dead organic matter that has been evenly spread on top of the ground. Mulching enriches and protects garden soil, providing a better environment for plants.
- Municipal Solid Waste or MSW
- Residential and commercial trash or garbage generated by a particular municipal area. These household or commercial wastes are in solid or semi-solid form and does not include hazardous waste.
- Mutation
- An abrupt change in the genetic characteristic of an organism.
