WELCOME LETTER OPW2023

We cordially invite you to participate in the 2023 Organic Phosphorus Workshop entitled
“Exploring the fate of organic phosphorus in soil and aquatic ecosystems in relation to global
societal and environmental challenges”.

Humanity faces many urgent challenges, including food security, environmental degradation, and climate change. The maintenance of current global food production, as well as future increases driven by projected population growth, are strongly dependent on continued inputs of phosphorus, mainly in the form of mineral fertilizers derived from phosphate rock. Global phosphate rock resources are finite, and there is an acknowledged urgent need to improve phosphorus use and efficiency in agroecosystems to meet increasing demand. Organic forms of phosphorus account for up to half of the total phosphorus present in many agricultural soils. The nature and dynamics of organic phosphorus in soil play a major role in determining phosphorus bioavailability and plant productivity, and optimisation of biological phosphorus cycling has the potential to contribute significantly to improving phosphorus use efficiency. Long-term inputs of phosphorus have resulted in the accumulation of significant quantities of legacy phosphorus in agricultural soils which in turn has contributed to increased diffuse phosphorus transfer and accelerated eutrophication of many water bodies. Biological processes play a vital role in determining the mobility and bioavailability of phosphorus in soils and sediments.

The workshop will be held in Pucón, Chile between 27 and 31 November 2023.
This is the fourth iteration of the organic phosphorus workshop series, and previous meetings were held in Switzerland (2003), Panama (2013), and England (2016).

We look forward to your participation in OP 2023!