... us begin with water vapor in the atmosphere. a) 12 Landfilled or others 83 27 55Total 100 100 100Furthermore, Time magazine, in its January 2, 1989, issue, reported that Japan, in 1988, recycled ... In the process of respiration, the food is broken down into CO 2 and water which are returned into the atmosphere. Figure 2. 2: The carbon and oxygen cyclesWhen the animals and plants die, ... animals.40Plants use CO 2 in the process of photosynthesis. Animals obtain their food from the plants and release CO 2 though the process of respiration. Decomposers and burning also release CO 2 into the...