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The European phosphorus balance

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  • Ott, Christian
  • Rechberger, Helmut

Abstract

Phosphorus (P) is considered a potentially critical resource because reserves are limited; it is required by all creatures, and it cannot be substituted. In this paper a substance flow analysis of phosphorus for the former 15 member states of the European Community (EU15) is presented. In order to consider the heterogeneity of the database with regard to quantity and quality all data are considered with uncertainty ranges. Error propagation and data reconciliation are performed applying the software STAN. Comparing basic and reconciled data shows that the result is reliable enough to allow the following conclusions: the system of the EU15 is largely dependent on imports of phosphorus. Net per capita consumption in the EU15 is 4.7kgP/yr of which only 1.2kgP/yr reach the consumer. The main losses are a net accumulation in agricultural soils (2.9kgP/yr), followed by losses to landfills (1.4kgP/yr) and to the hydrosphere (0.55kgP/yr). Only 0.77kgP/yr are recycled. Optimizing phosphorus fertilization, collecting and recycling of phosphorus-rich wastes, increasing the connection of households to sewer systems, and implementing tertiary wastewater treatment comprehensively could reduce Europe's import dependence on phosphorus significantly.

Suggested Citation

  • Ott, Christian & Rechberger, Helmut, 2012. "The European phosphorus balance," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 60(C), pages 159-172.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:recore:v:60:y:2012:i:c:p:159-172
    DOI: 10.1016/j.resconrec.2011.12.007
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Liu, Yi & Chen, Jining & Mol, Arthur P.J. & Ayres, Robert U., 2007. "Comparative analysis of phosphorus use within national and local economies in China," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 51(2), pages 454-474.
    2. Seyhan, Demet, 2009. "Country-scale phosphorus balancing as a base for resources conservation," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 53(12), pages 698-709.
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    Cited by:

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    2. Theobald, Tim F.H. & Schipper, Mark & Kern, Jürgen, 2016. "Phosphorus flows in Berlin-Brandenburg, a regional flow analysis," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 112(C), pages 1-14.
    3. Buchner, Hanno & Laner, David & Rechberger, Helmut & Fellner, Johann, 2014. "In-depth analysis of aluminum flows in Austria as a basis to increase resource efficiency," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 93(C), pages 112-123.
    4. Senthilkumar, Kalimuthu & Mollier, Alain & Delmas, Magalie & Pellerin, Sylvain & Nesme, Thomas, 2014. "Phosphorus recovery and recycling from waste: An appraisal based on a French case study," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 97-108.
    5. Chowdhury, Rubel Biswas & Moore, Graham A. & Weatherley, Anthony J. & Arora, Meenakshi, 2014. "A review of recent substance flow analyses of phosphorus to identify priority management areas at different geographical scales," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 213-228.
    6. Klinglmair, Manfred & Lemming, Camilla & Jensen, Lars Stoumann & Rechberger, Helmut & Astrup, Thomas Fruergaard & Scheutz, Charlotte, 2015. "Phosphorus in Denmark: National and regional anthropogenic flows," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 105(PB), pages 311-324.
    7. Wu, Huijun & Yuan, Zengwei & Zhang, Yongliang & Gao, Liangmin & Liu, Shaomin, 2014. "Life-cycle phosphorus use efficiency of the farming system in Anhui Province, Central China," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 1-14.
    8. Egle, Lukas & Rechberger, Helmut & Zessner, Matthias, 2015. "Overview and description of technologies for recovering phosphorus from municipal wastewater," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 105(PB), pages 325-346.
    9. Cooper, James & Carliell-Marquet, Cynthia, 2013. "A substance flow analysis of phosphorus in the UK food production and consumption system," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 82-100.
    10. Egle, L. & Zoboli, O. & Thaler, S. & Rechberger, H. & Zessner, M., 2014. "The Austrian P budget as a basis for resource optimization," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 152-162.

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