Phosphorus
http://mac122.icu.ac.jp/gen-ed/ecosystem-jpgs/phosphoruscycle.jpg
Biogeochemical Cycle
Phosphorus
 Phosphorus
is a vital nutrient necessary for plants
and animals in the form of PO43- and HPO42-.
 Phosphorus is the building block of important parts
of the body such as bones and teeth.
 About 80% of the world’s phosphorus is used in
fertilizers and soft drinks.
 Phosphorus does not entre the atmosphere it stays
in rocks and soil minerals.
Phosphorus
 Unlike
other cycles of matter compounds,
phosphorus cannot be found in atmosphere as a
gas.
 It usually cycles through water, soil, and
sediments.
Phosphorous Cycle
First phosphorus is eroded off of rocks and deposited in
the soil.
 Now in the soil, phosphorus is absorbed into the clay and
other organic material within the soil.
 Next plants dissolve the ionized phosphates in the soil.
 Then the phosphates are absorbed by herbivores when
they consume the plants and then into carnivores when
they eat the herbivores.
 Finally phosphorus is deposited back into the soil when
plants and animals decay or through animal waste.

http://www.enviroliteracy.org/images/page-spec//phoscycle2.gif
Human Effects
 The
mining of phosphate ores for fertilizer affects
the time cycle of the phosphorus cycle.
 Mining results in the premature release of
phosphates into the cycle which can cause an
abundance of algae to form and cause hypoxia.
 Normal levels of Phosphorus in surface water .01
to .03 mg/l
Work cited
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Ophardt, Charles E. "Phosphorus Cycle." Virtual Chembook. 2003. Elmhurst College. 17 Nov. 2008
<http://www.elmhurst.edu/~chm/vchembook/308phosphorus.html>.
"Phosphorus Cycle." Environmental Impacts of Agriculture. Princeton. 17 Nov. 2008
<http://www.princeton.edu/~chm333/2003/agriculture/phosphoruscycle.htm>.
"Phosphorus Cycle." Science Online. 25 Oct. 2006. 17 Nov. 2008
<http://www.scionline.org/index.php/phosphorus_cycle>.
"Phosphorus Cycle." The Environmental Literacy Council. 2 Mar. 2008. The Environmental Literacy
Council. 17 Nov. 2008 <http://www.enviroliteracy.org/article.php/480.html>.
"Phosphorus." Water Shedss. 1976. University of North Carolina. 17 Nov. 2008
<http://www.water.ncsu.edu/watershedss/info/phos.html>.

Winstead, Ray L. "Phosphorus Biogeochemical Cycle." Dr. Ray L Winstead. 3 Aug. 2005. 17 Nov.
2008 <http://nsm1.nsm.iup.edu/rwinstea/phosphorus.shtm>.