The European Commission has added phosphate rock to the list of 20 Critical Raw Materials, for which supply security is at risk and economic importance is high. Phosphate rock is identified as non-substitutable and of high economic importance. The updated list results from analysis of 54 non-energy, non-food materials including both abiotic and biotic materials. European policies to address raw materials criticality and dependency include improving efficiency of materials use and recycling, waste policy and international cooperation to address supply security.
Global TraPs www.globaltraps.ch has announced that it will terminate its activities end 2014. Some form of "global phosphorus initiative", bringing together science, regulators and stakeholders, is expected to be launched by then through GPNM (Global Partnership on Nutrient Management, UNEP secretariat).The GPNM phosphorus initiative project is currently being preapred by a team led by Kaj Sanders (Government of the Netherlands, represented by Arnoud Passenier, President of the European Sustainable Phosphorus Partnership ESPP), Terry Roberts (International Plant Nutrition Institute); and Tom Sims (University of Delaware, USA).
The Biorefine Cluster Europe interconnects projects within the domain of nutrient and energy cycling. Biorefine Cluster contributes to sustainable resource management, from an economic and ecologic point of view. More than 100 institutes and companies from 18 member states, with a combined budget of more than 35 million euro. See SCOPE Newsletter n° 103 under "Downloads" and http://biorefine.eu/cluster/news/BiorefineClusterjoinedESPP
The revision of the EU Fertiliser Regulation, under discussion, will facilitate placing on the market of organic and recycled nutrient products whilst ensuring safety and quality. Read more...
7th July 2014, Rennes, France: Sustainable phosphorus management in France: ESPP is organising a first meeting to establish a "sustainable phosphorus network" in France. The meeting will be followed by the workshop "Regions at work for the Bioeconomy", Rennes 7 (evening) - 9 July 2014, organised by the European Commission DG Enterprise and Brittany Region.
Send us your vision for sustainable phosphorus in tomorrow’s world. ESPP is preparing a special SCOPE Newsletter edition, consisting of short texts presenting perspectives and expert opinion for different pathways to address the phosphorus challenge.
The EU’s new R&D funding programme Horizon2020 includes a number of areas relevant to phosphorus sustainability, with opportunities for research, demonstration, implementation.
Several Horizon 2020 funding calls now open offer opportunities for sustainable phosphorus management projects:
- phosphorus in agriculture: sustainable crop production – external nutrient inputs
- raw materials: sustainable exploration, extraction, processing
- recovery technologies for minerals, specifically focussing on SMEs and demonstration
- cooperation with raw materials producing countries
- nutrient and energy recovery from manures and agricultural wastes
- new solutions for production of raw materials from secondary materials
Details can be found here.
The second European Sustainable Phosphorus Conference (ESPC2) will take place in Berlin, 5th – 6th March 2015. This follows the 1st ESPC Conference, Brussels, March 2013, the establishment of the German P Platform, announcements or consultations on phosphorus policy in several Member States, and continuing developments on phosphorus use, recycling and environmental management. This second European conference ESPC2 will cover the following themes, particularly showcasing success stories and business cases and involvement of the Baltic, Black Sea and Mediterranean areas.
• P losses and environmental impacts
• P from farm to plate
• Food security and international phosphorus supply
• Reuse of P and P-recycling
• Progress made addressing the Phosphorus Challenge
Contact: Christian Kabbe, German Phosphorus Platform and further information soon on www.phosphorusplatform.org
The Commission is launching a consultation on how to use phosphorus in a more sustainable way. Phosphorus is widely used in agriculture and is an essential component in fertiliser and animal feed, but it is a resource which has no substitute. Supplies are limited, prices have been volatile and much phosphorus is currently wasted, creating concerns about the cost and availability of futuresupplies in the EU and worldwide. http://ec.europa.eu/environment/natres/phosphorus.htm
The European Sustainable Phosphorus Platform has produced a short outline note estimating potential economic benefits and job creation of P-recycling and P-stewardship. This outline estimate does not claim to be accurate or economically demonstrated because, at present, no coherent data have been collected and no targeted studies are available. Its objective is to solicit further input and comments. Pleas mail your comments to the ESPP team. Download the document ESPP jobs and employment.pdf here
Participate, Colaborate, Innovate... Now is the time to participate! Become an official partner of the European Sustainable Phosphorus Platform and present yourself as a front-runner, exchange experiences and information on phosphorus recycling and efficiency and have access to a network covering the entire value chain. For more information about the benefits, first actions and the interim budget please download the European Sustainable Phosphorus Platform Call for Parners.
We are glad to share with you the conclusions of the 1st European Sustainable Phosphorus Conference in Brussels that took place in Brussels on the 6th and 7th of March. Please download the document in which the main conclusions as well as the conclusions of the interactive table sessions have been summed up. You are more than welcome to distribute the conclusions further throughout your own networks in order to keep the momentum that has been created around the Phosphorus Challenge.
Conclusion ESPC2013.pdf
The SCOPE Newsletter is produced 4 - 6 times yearly by CEEP and seeks to promote the sustainable use of phosphates through recovery and recycling and a better understanding of the role of phosphates in the environment. The March edition of the Newsletter was dedicated to the European Sustainable Phosphorus Conference and its outcomes. Download the Newsletter here.
Speeches, presentations, key messages, the joint declaration and all cartoons and photos of the European Sustainable Phosphorus Conference are now online on this website. Go to ESPC2013 or the Downloads page. Here you can also find the video that was made during the first day of the Conference. The coming weeks this website will be regularly updated with new outcomes of ESPC2013.
Two days of conference resulted in more than 400 photos. We have put them all together in a web album on our Facebook page. Even if you do not have a facebook account you can view the album. Please note that the photos are not free of copyright.
Africa Interactive made a very nice video impression of the first day of the European Sustainable Phosphorus Conference 2013.
EU commissioner Janez Potočnik hopes to release the green paper on Phosphorus later this month. This was his answer to the urgent message of the European companies and other stakeholders present at the first European Sustainable Phosphorus Conference, held on March 6 and 7, in Brussels.
The last interactive sessions have ended and al participants are now enjoying a network drink before going to dinner. The first European Sustainable Phosphorus Conference is halfway. Over 300 delegates from 33 different countries kicked of ESPC2013. For an impression of this first day we published a photo report.
The following article has been pubished by ENDS Europe, Europe's environmental news and information service.
A delayed EU green paper on the sustainable management of phosphorous should be published as soon as possible, says the Dutch representation in Brussels.
The Hague Centre for Strategic Studies (HCSS) is an independent think tank, helping governments, non-governmental organizations and the private sector to understand the fast-changing environment. HCSS seeks to anticipate the challenges of the future with practical policy solutions and advice. The latest HCSS report investigates Risks and Opportunities in the Global Phosphate Rock Market and provides 'robust strategies' in times of uncertainty.
On february 1 2013, the pre-registration for ESPC2013 will be closing. Only a few places are left. Please visit the conference web page at http://www.espc2013.org or lick here to register directly.