Differentiating recycling from composting, which statement is correct?

Differentiating recycling from composting, which statement is correct?

• A. Recycling reprocesses materials into new products; composting transforms organic waste into soil amendments.
• B. Both turn waste into energy.
• C. Recycling is for organic waste only; composting is for plastics.
• D. Composting yields metal pellets; recycling yields soil.

Answer: (A)

The main idea here is understanding what each process does with different types of waste. Recycling takes materials such as paper, glass, plastics, and metals and reprocesses them into new products, effectively turning used items back into raw materials for manufacturing. Composting, on the other hand, uses microbes to biologically break down organic waste—like food scraps and yard waste—into a nutrient-rich soil amendment that improves soil health. That’s why the correct statement fits: recycling reprocesses materials into new products, while composting transforms organic waste into soil amendments. The other choices misstate what each process does—recycling and composting don’t both turn waste into energy, composting isn’t for plastics, and composting doesn’t yield metal pellets while recycling doesn’t create soil.

The main idea here is understanding what each process does with different types of waste. Recycling takes materials such as paper, glass, plastics, and metals and reprocesses them into new products, effectively turning used items back into raw materials for manufacturing. Composting, on the other hand, uses microbes to biologically break down organic waste—like food scraps and yard waste—into a nutrient-rich soil amendment that improves soil health.

That’s why the correct statement fits: recycling reprocesses materials into new products, while composting transforms organic waste into soil amendments. The other choices misstate what each process does—recycling and composting don’t both turn waste into energy, composting isn’t for plastics, and composting doesn’t yield metal pellets while recycling doesn’t create soil.