ASCOT Library Zabali Campus

Recommendations –
Introduction –
Regional food security: demographic and geographic implications - P. J. Stangel and H. R. von Uexkull –
Fertilizer policies for agricultural development - L. M. Maene –
Protection of the environment: sustained agriculture, sustained ecosystems - L. M. Kyuma –
Phosphorus for sustainable agricultural growth in Asia: an assessment of alternative sources and management - G. M. Desai and V. Gandhi –
Phosphorus fertilizer use in Asia and Oceania - A. Belmehdi and K. F. Nyiri –
The phosphorus resources of Asia and Oceania - P. J. Cook, D. M. Banerjee, and P. N. Southgate –
Recycling phosphorus from crop and animal wastes in China - Zhu Zhao-liang and Xi Zhen-bang –
New approaches to phosphorus fertilization - M. J. Hedley, A. Hussin, and N. S. Bolan –
Comparison of the effectiveness of phosphorus fertilizer products - S. H. Chien, P. W. G. Sale, and L.L. Hammond –
Assessing fertilizer requirements - I. S. Cornforth, A. K. Metherell, and Puntipa Sorn-srivichai –
Phosphorus losses through transfer, runoff, and soil erosion - J. C. Ward, K. F. O' Connor, and Gan Wei-bin –
Utilization of phosphorus transported from uplands to lowlands and estuaries - E. Miwa –
Inorganic reactions influencing phosphorus cycling in soils - J. K. Syers and Lu Ru-kun –
Relating chemical processes to management systems - N. J. Barrow –
Phosphorus chemistry in relation to water regime - G. J. D. Kirk, Yu Tian-ren, and F. A. Choudhury –
Chemistry of adverse flooded soils - H. U. Neue and Zhu Zhong-lin –
Chemistry of adverse upland soils - K. Wada, Li Xue-yuan, and P. W. Moody –
Effects of liming on soil phosphorus availability and utilization - D. C. Edmeades, D. M. Wheeler, and R. M. Pringle –
Effect of sulfur, silicon, and trace metal interactions in determining the dynamics of phosphorus in agricultural systems - G. J. Blair, J. R. Freney, and J. K. Park –
Phosphorus as a factor limiting nitrogen fixation in flooded rice soils - I. Watanabe and Wisit Cholitkul –
The role of phosphorus in nitrogen fixation in upland crops - M. J. McLaughlin, K. A. Malik, K. S. Memon, and M. Idris –
Phosphorus requirements and management for lowland rice - S. K. De Datta, t. K. Biswas, and C. Charoenchamratcheep –
Phosphorus management in lowland rice-based cropping systems - B. Palmer, M. Ismunadiji, and Vo-tong Xuan –
Phosphorus requirements and management in upland rice-based cropping systems - D. P. Garrrity, C. P. Mamaril, and Goeswono Soepardi –
Phosphorus requirements and management of maize, sorghum, and wheat - N. N. Goswami, M. B. Kamath, and Djoko Santoso –
Phosphorus requirements and management of grain legumes - R. K. Pandey and J. L. McIntosh –
Phosphorus requirements and management of oilseeds - K. L. Sahrawat and M. S. Islam –
Phosphorus requirements and management of tea, coffee, and cacao - A. H. Ling, P. E. Harding, and V. Ranganathan –
Phosphorus requirements and management of oil palm, coconut, and rubber - E. Pushparajah, F. Chan,a nd S. S. Magat –
Phosphorus requirements and management of sugarcane, pineapple, and banana - R. L. Fox, R. P. Bosshart, D. Sampongse, and Lin Mu-lien –
Phosphorus requirements and management of tropical root and tuber crops - R. H. Howeler –
Phosphorus requirements of fiber crops - cotton, jute, and kenaf - Lin Bao and P. N. Takkar –
Phosphorus management in intensive vegetable cultivation - S. L. Amarasiri –
Management of fertility, variety, planting density, and irrigation for maximum yield - H. L. S. Tandon and D. K. Kundu.

"Over the years, IRRI has hosted many conferences, seminars, and workshops, but almost all of them have dealt predominantly with rice. A conference where a hundred or so participants from 23 countries from 5 continents meet at IRRI on a subject where rice is not central needs at least a short introduction.
Phosphorus has been known to mankind for 320 years. Its discoverer gave it the name Brand, meaning "fire," which was the context of my first experience with that element, as the phosphorus bomb-and it was not a very comfortable one. I later learned that, as is so often the case, what we can use to kill we need to live. Life on our planet is hardly possible, hardly thinkable, without phosphorus.
Our goal of establishing sustainable agricultural production systems cannot be achieved by isolated disciplinary approaches. Holistic thinking and cybernetic methods are the keys to the doors we have to open. Each year we consume more than 13 million tons of phosphorus. Nobody knows how long this can go on. Nobody knows how the farmers, who cannot afford commercial fertilizer today, will be able to use fertilizer in the future to the extent needed to attain rice yields in excess of 10 t/ha.
Normally phosphorus removal by a crop does not exceed 15-20% of added phosphorus; the rest is retained in the soil. In IRRI's five-year work plan we are committed to narrowing the basic knowledge gaps in phosphorus fertilizer and its dynamics, in rice nutrition, and in the management of soil and fertilizer phosphorus using a systems approach. More specifically, we shall undertake research on phosphorus nutrition and processes at the root-soil interface in relation to phosphorus uptake, and on the stimulation of biological nitrogen fixation in flooded soils by introducing highly efficient stem- and root-nodulating green manure species. We shall also evaluate less expensive phosphorus sources for sustainable production of rice and associated crops in irrigated, rainfed lowland, deepwater, and tidal wetland environments. A symposium like this one can be extremely helpful in our endeavors.
Phosphorus resources are concentrated in a few parts of the world, in a very few countries. Will phosphorus become an asset in the global struggle between have and have-not nations? It is a possibility. Our answer can be very easy to formulate but very difficult to put into practice. We have to be exceedingly careful in the use of phosphorus resources. And we have to make all efforts to avoid losses. Phosphorus fixation occurs in different soils under different conditions. We need more knowledge of how to avoid and to overcome constraints, how to increase phosphorus availability to crops, and how to increase the efficiency of the plant root system. And we have to stop pollution of water, of soil, and of air, since we cannot afford to waste phosphorus, nor to use it in a way that makes our environment hostile. The carrying capacity of our globe, which should be 10-12 billion people, may be reduced if we make wrong decisions. Sustainability without nutrient recycling is an illusion. Economists must include not only short-term profits, but long-term liabilities in their calculations of gains and losses.
Specialization and modernization of farming systems, wherein human beings try to manipulate and exploit nature instead of being part of it, can lead to environmental degradation and the disintegration of agricultural production. Acid rain is the starting point of a disaster that mankind may not be able to control. Our problem is to find the way out of the dilemma without losing sight of our goal. Phosphorus requirements in agriculture seem to be a neglected topic, since we are thinking at best in decades. For me, this is very short-term. We must consider the generations to come. Let us share that responsibility and let us keep in mind that there is not much time left for new solutions and new attitudes. If the scientific community does not give the warning and provide direction for the way out at an early stage, we have to share with the politicians the responsibility for disaster.
This symposium was sponsored in one way or another by eight organizations, and we are grateful for the generosity of our partners: the Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment (SCOPE)/United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), World Phosphate Institute (IMPHOS), American Phosphate Foundation (APF), Potash and Phosphate Institute (PPI), Australian International Develop- ment Assistance Bureau, Food and Fertilizer Technology Center for the Asian and Pacific Region, and Fertilizer Advisory, Development and Information Network for Asia and the Pacific.
The Program Committee for this symposium was a particularly broad-based one. Chaired by J. R. Freney of the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization, it included A. Belmehdi and M. Debbi of IMPHOS, C.V. Cole of SCOPE/UNEP, H.W. Fogt, Jr. of APF, H.R. von Uexkull and R.P. Bosshart of PPI/IPI, H. Tiessen of SCOPE, and S.K. De Datta and S.J. Banta of IRRI. S.K. De Datta, J. Freney, and C.V. Cole arranged an excellent agenda, and S.K. De Datta handled the local arrangements at IRRI. H. Tiessen was the scientific editor and organized the papers into a logical sequence. S.J. Banta edited the proceedings with the assistance of G.S. Argosino.
The symposium was a very stimulating event and a successful one as well. Let me thank all who helped to finance, prepare, organize, and contribute to that endeavor: a joint effort towards a more future-conscious use of nonrenewable resources. In our world of uncontrolled consumption, we are in urgent need of more joint ventures of this caliber."
- Klaus Lampe
Director General
International Rice Research Institute