
Is phosphorus running out and why does it matter? - fishcolorbrick
https://beta.wikitribune.com/story/2017/08/10/science/is-phosphorus-running-out-and-why-does-it-matter/2352/
======
fishcolorbrick
TFA: _the majority of [phosphorous] reserves are in Morocco /Western Sahara,
China, the U.S and South Africa. These four/five countries hold 83 percent of
the world’s phosphate reserves according to scientist David Vaccari_

[0] "Ocean engineer David Vaccari says that the most sustainable environmental
flow of phosphorus "would be the natural flux: seven million metric tons per
year (Mt/yr). To hit that mark yet satisfy our usage of 22 Mt/yr, we would
have to recycle or reuse 72 percent of our phosphorus […] The flow could be
reduced with existing technologies… [lowering] the loss to waterways from 22
to 8.25 Mt/yr, not very much above the natural flux."

[0]:
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planetary_boundaries#Freshwate...](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planetary_boundaries#Freshwater)

