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The two main types of composting are at-home versus commercial. Both produce healthy soil to be reused – the main difference lies in what materials are able to go into the process. [37] At-home composting is mostly used for food scraps and excess garden materials, such as weeds.
[8] [9] While incineration can recover the most energy, anaerobic digestion plants retain nutrients and make compost for soil amendment and still recover some of the contained energy in the form of biogas. Kompogas produced 27 million Kwh of electricity and biogas in 2009. The oldest of the company's lorries has achieved 1,000,000 kilometers ...
Biologically-based polymers, sourced from non-fossil materials, can decompose naturally in the environment, whereas some plastics products made from biodegradable polymers require the assistance of anaerobic digesters or composting units to break down synthetic material during organic recycling processes. [40] [14]
A decomposing human body in the earth will eventually release approximately 32 g (1.1 oz) of nitrogen, 10 g (0.35 oz) of phosphorus, 4 g (0.14 oz) of potassium, and 1 g (0.035 oz) of magnesium for every kilogram of dry body mass, making changes in the chemistry of the soil around it that may persist for years.
Litter with a higher proportion of labile compounds decomposes much more rapidly than does litter with a higher proportion of recalcitrant material. Consequently, dead animals decompose more rapidly than dead leaves, which themselves decompose more rapidly than fallen branches. [64] As organic material in the soil ages, its quality decreases.
Soil aggregation can physically protect organic carbon from decay by soil microbes. [19] More aggregate formation can result in more soil carbon storage. There is much evidence that arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi increase soil aggregate formation, and that aggregate formation may be mediated by the arbuscular mycorrhizal protein glomalin. [20]
Home composting pile with added kitchen waste. There are various types of organic waste that can be used to compost at home. Composting requires two types of organic materials: "green" waste and "brown" waste. [7] This is due to organic waste requiring four elements to decompose: nitrogen, carbon, oxygen, and water.
Although the natural decomposition of human corpses into soil is a long-standing practice, a more rapid process that was developed in the early 21st century by Katrina Spade, entails encasing human corpses in wood chips, straw, and alfalfa until thermophile microbes decompose the body. [3]