The Policy Landscape of Phosphorus: Where Agriculture, Conservation, and Water Quality Collide

What does phosphorus policy actually look like on the ground, and who gets to shape it? In this season premiere of PhosForUs, hosts Barira Rashid (PhD Candidate, University of Arkansas) and Hector Fajardo (PhD Candidate, NC State University) sit down with Jonathan Coppess, Associate Professor of Agricultural Policy at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, to unpack how phosphorus shows up in U.S. farm policy, from conservation programs and nutrient management plans to the economic pressures farmers face every day.Together, they explore the tension between phosphorus as a critical food security resource and a water quality threat, ask whose voices shape agricultural phosphorus policy, and look ahead at what questions still need deeper attention, including nutrient recovery, circular nutrient use, and better coordination between agriculture and environmental goals.Whether you work in agriculture, environmental science, water policy, or just want to understand how nutrient management decisions get made, this episode sets the foundation for a season built around one big question: how do we govern phosphorus better?Topics discussed: phosphorus policy, environmental governance, public administration, critical minerals, water quality, nutrient management, sustainability policy, systems thinking, and phosphorus sustainability.