The Phosphorous Paradox

First life originated in water and phosphorus plays important role in evolution of whole spectrum of life. Phosphorus constitutes integral part of nucleic acids and amino acids which are carriers of the whole genetic information of evolution of life on this planet and building block in every form of life. Such is importance of element phosphorus. But, now phosphorous is emerging hidden crisis before agricultural community and environmentalists of the world.

Unlike nitrogen and carbon cycle, phosphorous cycle is not linked to atmosphere. Phosphorous existed as non-renewable and finite resource on earth. It is found as phosphorus mines in some parts of world like Morocco or some parts of United States of America. Locally it is found in form of rocks below surface, with degradation, microbial actions and erosion, it keep on getting available to plants and so to animal kingdom progressively through law of energy. Microbes help in this process to get phosphorus available to plants and keep cycle going on.

But in last few decades, phosphorous has been mined hugely to be used in agricultural activities to raise food demand for growing population. It has been mined from its naturally found sources in way like fossil fuels, and shifted to parts of world where it is demanded to raise crops. This phenomena in agriculture is creating huge hidden problem before world which is also coined as 'The phosphorous paradox'.

Phosphorous has efficiency of less or around 15 percent to get available to plants, close to 85 percent or more get fixated in soils specially acidic soils. It get available to plants through microbial action mainly. With run-off or flash-floods phosphorous from soils goes into water bodies and finally in oceans, where it creates problem.
Phosphorous fertilizers in water bodies cause cultural/anthropogenic 'eutrophification' which leads to exponential growth of blue-green algae. Exponential growth of blue green-algae in water bodies and in oceans leads to low biological oxygen demand (BOD) for huge diverse aquatic life and finally death due to chocking. So, this fixated phosphorous in agriculture is major culprit for this hidden danger of 'The phosphorous paradox'.
Second, many of phosphorous fertilizers are source of heavy metals specially cadmium and uranium. So, along phosphorous such heavy metals are also entering in our food-chain.

Solution for this crisis is in hands of nature. We simply need to trust nature and learn from her. Mycorrhiza and phosphorous solublising bacteria (PSB) can help us to provide huge fixated form of phosphorous in soils to plants and reduce its run-off to water-bodies. This would also help larger farmer community to judiciously use phosphorous fertilizers and cut their input costs with less mining of limited natural phosphorous sources.
Bio-mimicry- learning from nature and natural designs can only help us to come out of this 'The phosphorous paradox'.

(Views are personal and objective)