Passage Summary: The mayor says we have a huge trash problem, and even though recycling would cut down on the trash, it would somehow end up causing more environmental harm than good.

Reasoning: The mayor notes that while garbage is a major environmental issue and recycling reduces garbage, implementing recycling projects would actually hinder the goal of minimizing environmental damage.

Analysis: We are faced with a classic head-scratcher: if recycling reduces the very garbage that causes environmental problems, why would the mayor claim it is counterproductive? To resolve this, we need a piece of information that explains how the process of recycling itself might be environmentally damaging. Look for an answer that introduces a side effect of recycling—perhaps it requires toxic chemicals or massive amounts of energy—that outweighs the benefit of reducing the garbage pile. The correct choice will allow both the fact that recycling reduces waste and the fact that it causes damage to coexist logically.