Nutrient pollution of the Illinois River has sparked a long and contentious battle, which has been legally addressed with this settlement. oklahoma.gov/oag/news/new...

The low cost of virgin phosphates continues to bedevil recycling efforts: "There's really no value in recycling iron phosphate, unfortunately" www.npr.org/2026/07/13/n...

Carbon markets can be leveraged to allow utilities to trade nutrient pollution credits with farmers and others who implement more cost effective nutrient loss reduction practices than equivalent reductions obtained from building costly and carbon-intensive infrastructure.

Did you miss our newsletter? You can find it here, but don't tell anyone. mailchi.mp/c7f989b475cf...

STEPS Center postdoc Dr. Alison Deviney writes here about our recent T2PM workshop on aqueous P load mitigation. Included is a link to the full workshop report. phosphorusalliance.org/2026/06/30/c...

The Trump administration has just lifted countervailing duties on Moroccan phosphate imports to the US in an emergency declaration. www.whitehouse.gov/presidential...

Microplastic contamination plagues food waste (and phosphorus) recycling. Mechanical depackaging is being used to increase recycling of packaged foods, but can lead to increased microplastic contamination. Here's how states are coping www.biocycle.net/food-waste-d...

Nice piece on some of the regulatory challenges facing wastewater utilities who try to extract value from their waste streams, including for gas generation and nutrient recycling. law.marquette.edu/facultyblog/...

Our Director, Jim Elser, was quoted in this Vox piece on the causes of the algae growth in the reflecting pool at the Capitol www.vox.com/climate/4929...

The case for composting organic waste (and hopefully recycling nutrients) builds in the US NE as landfill capacity dwindles. www.biocycle.net/newmoa-north...

If you like this post before June 13, 2026, we'll give you $1M.

Improving water quality in our agricultural headwaters is key to improving freshwater quality and biodiversity.

You could read Hemmingway again this summer, but why would you when our STEPS Center has produced over 130 academic publications spanning all dimensions of phosphorus sustainability? steps-center.org/steps-public...

How is the war in Iran impacting fertilizer supplies and prices?

Thoughts about risk perception, conservation funding, and cover cropping from our STEPS (Science and Technologies for Phosphorus Sustainability) Center colleague Jonathan Coppess and team. farmdocdaily.illinois.edu/2026/05/cons...

IL farmers are paying more for fertilizer since the start of the Iran war, but many pre-purchased or applied prior to escalating prices. Next year may be a different story. One way to offset coming price increases is to apply N&P only at recommended rates. farmdocdaily.illinois.edu/2026/05/fert...

There are phosphates in your food and some products (soft drinks, processed meats) can contain a lot. It's not labeled in the US, though the National Kidney Foundation has pushed the FDA to do so for people with kidney issues. A new paper argues that lowering P intake may protect healthy people too.

No need to pull your hair and gnash your teeth. If you missed today's webinar on P and water management on the farm, it's available on our YouTube channel. Subscribe to keep up. youtu.be/nrfg1KjI_cg?...

Our Earth Day celebration included hosting a Florida workshop that brought together regulators, growers, technology providers and academics to discuss ways to prevent & remediate P overloads in freshwaters. A great turnout w/talks & breakouts that built important new connections & insights.

Thanks to ASU for publishing this piece about our work and its relevance to recent critical minerals developments. news.asu.edu/b/20260325-p...

Overloading our natural waters with phosphorus can drive the formation of harmful algal blooms and the substantial emissions of greenhouse gases. Many interventions exist. Go to phosphorusalliance.org to learn more

About 60% of U.S. food waste and its phosphate content is sent to landfills. Reducing and recycling food waste helps shore up our domestic supplies of this critical mineral. Learn more via this webinar: youtu.be/QoCDb58lTtc?...

We're excited to be teaming up with Agricultural Nutrient Policy Council to help reduce nutrient losses from farms. Here's a bit about the collaboration. www.agnutrientpolicy.org/news/2026agr...

Phosphorus is essential for all life, including the crops we grow for our food. Phosphate fertilizer is essential for high yield agriculture and a massive increase in P mining accompanied the global "Green Revolution" in the 20th century. #Pweek (Figure from our book, Phosphorus Past and Future)

Phosphorus plays an essential role in your daily life. Help conserve phosphorus resources and protect water from phosphorus pollution by taking these twelve steps around your home: phosphorusalliance.org/get-involved...

Phosphate is a critical mineral. Measures such as optimizing fertilizer usage in agriculture, recovering phosphates from waste streams and implementing erosion control can conserve phosphates, reduce pollution, and ensure agricultural productivity. Learn more: phosphorusalliance.org/about/who-we...

Phosphate rock was recently classified as a critical mineral by the US government. We need to shore up our domestic supplies by using it more efficiently and recycling it better. Learn more: tinyurl.com/4bfbfxup

EVERY living thing needs phosphorus to survive. You’ll find P in DNA, RNA, cell membranes, and more. It’s the 6th most abundant element in your body. Find out more here: youtu.be/2xhLPtjcwmo?...

You have stellar bone structure! Did you know that the phosphorus atoms that build your bones (and your DNA) were formed in certain novae and supernovae in space? And that this happened billions of years ago? #Pweek @sustainablep.bsky.social drive.google.com/file/d/1Jv7z...

Happy Phosphorus Week! On the 15th week of the year we honor the 15th element. Join us this week in sharing news of P sustainability work and in celebrating the efforts of other groups working toward this important cause.

Microbes play a key role in phosphorus cycling in all soils. Here are some key pathways.

What's up with the recent declaration of phosphate as a critical mineral? Find out in our latest blogpost. phosphorusalliance.org/2026/03/30/s...

Just released! If you're not already subscribed to our quarterly newsletter, you can view the latest here. Click the subscribe link at the bottom to receive it to your inbox. We'll only send you these plus an occasional webinar or conference announcement. mailchi.mp/225587857c77...

We are very pleased to announce that KASE/Warbonnet has joined us as our 15th member. KW is an Idaho environmental remediation and O&M contractor that specializes in the elemental phosphorus and agricultural products industry. They have been serving Fortune 500 clients for over 20 years.

How can farm water be managed to improve nutrient use efficiency and reduce nutrient pollution? Tune in to our next free webinar on April 29 to find out. asu.zoom.us/webinar/regi...

Help us tell the world about how important it is to P responsibly. Tag us with your P-related posts during Phosphorus Week, April 6-10, so we can share your work.

Greater attention to food waste management is driving positive results that should advance the circular economy for phosphorus www.biocycle.net/retail-food-...

Even pristine mountain lakes are becoming eutrophic as nutrients are delivered to them via wildfires, melting glaciers, wind erosion and other routes. www.scientificamerican.com/article/scie...

Phosphate fertilizers are produced using sulfuric acid and that sulfur comes from oil distillation. In addition to direct exports of P fertilizer being disrupted by the regional war in the Middle East, supply chains will be adversely impacted by oil markets. www.brownfieldagnews.com/news/global-...

We hear a lot about manure fertilization as a way to build soil carbon, but do mineral fertilizers also build soil carbon? A recent study from the UK says yes.

We're pleased to announce the the Agricultural Nutrient Policy Council (ANPC) has become a strategic partner of the Sustainable Phosphorus Alliance. ANPC "fosters partnerships to reduce nutrient loss while producing food, feed, fuel and fiber for our nation and the world" www.agnutrientpolicy.org

A new executive order expands upon a recent decision to list phosphate rock as a critical mineral in the US. This order focuses on elemental P and, somewhat oddly, glyphosate. To our knowledge, the only company that currently produces elemental P or glyphosate in the US is Bayer tinyurl.com/2d4ujmrt

Eutrophication from excess loading of P and N drives methane emissions from lakes and other fresh waterbodies. It's a significant contributor to climate change, and climate change will likely increase eutrophication in a vicious cycle. Go to phosphorusalliance.org to learn what can be done to help.

A fair number of states restrict the use of phosphates in lawn fertilizers, usually in accordance with a soil test. This is one way to reduce P loading of nearby waterways via stormwater and leaching.

An upcoming workshop hosted by our friends will explore whether P fertilizer use in the field can have significant Scope 3 greenhouse impacts, in-field and downstream. Register here: www.eventbrite.fr/e/climate-em...

Are you interested in doing field research on enhanced efficiency fertilizers? This RFA might be for you. foundationfar.org/grants-fundi...

US EPA has released its National Nutrient Inventory, a major effort which "provides estimates of major agricultural, urban, atmospheric, and natural nutrient fluxes for the contiguous United States", 1987-2017 (from 1950 for agriculture). doi.org/10.1021/acs....

If you missed our webinar yesterday on managing wastes produced when processing phosphate rock to make products, you can check it out here. Make sure to subscribe to our channel if you want to receive notifications of future releases or if you just want to look cool. youtu.be/GTAjcKevANU

Final reminder to register for our Jan 14 webinar on managing phosphorus production wastes. Learn about some of the environmental externalities of producing phosphorus/phosphates and how we can valorize production wastes. asu.zoom.us/webinar/regi...

We just released our latest newsletter! You can sign up to receive it quarterly via the Resources tab on our website or just view this issue here. mailchi.mp/811ff336c5af...