Your friend John is having trouble with his compost bin. The material in his compost pile doesn't seem to be decomposing well. You take a sample of the pile and check for the presence of microorganisms under the microscope. You see that there are indeed microorganisms; however, they don't appear to be growing very fast. John says that he regularly mixes his compost pile to expose it to oxygen but has noticed the pile feels cold. What is the most likely explanation for this problem? (1 point)

Question

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Answer 1

The most likely explanation for this problem is that the compost pile is not reaching a high enough temperature for efficient decomposition. Composting microorganisms require a certain temperature range to thrive and break down organic material effectively. If the pile feels cold, it may not be heating up enough to support rapid decomposition. This could be due to insufficient nitrogen-rich materials (green materials) in the pile, poor aeration, or simply not enough mass in the pile to generate heat. John may need to add more nitrogen-rich materials, such as kitchen scraps or grass clippings, and continue turning the pile regularly to increase oxygen exposure and heat production.