This Country Has Something Everyone Else Wants

Thanks to the University of Minnesota for sponsoring this video! http://twin-cities.umn.edu/
Morocco has 3/4 of the worlds known reserves of rock phosphate, our main source of phosphorus, so Morocco may be key to our long-term ability to grow food.
At the time of publishing, the United Nations does not recognize Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara, instead identifying it as a non-self-governing territory: https://www.un.org/en/decolonization/pdf/Western-Sahara2019.pdf

Thanks also to our Patreon patrons https://www.patreon.com/MinuteEarth and our YouTube members.
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To learn more, start your googling with these keywords:
Phosphorus - a chemical element used in explosives, matches, and fertilizers (as it is a key nutrient for plant growth)
Phosphate rock - a sedimentary rock containing high amounts of phosphate minerals - the main source of agricultural P fertilizer
Phosphate - a salt or ester of phosphoric acid, containing PO4 -3 or a related anion or a group
4 Rs of Nutrient Management - Right fertilizer source, at the Right rate, at the Right time, and in the Right place
Reserve - the part of a resource that could be economically extracted or produced at the moment
Resource - a concentration of naturally occurring solid, liquid, or gaseous material in or on the Earths crust in such form and amount that economic extraction of a commodity from the concentration is currently or potentially feasible

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If you liked this weeks video, you might also like:
Article about conflict in Western Sahara - http://bit.ly/2ZjYjQW
Radio about Phosphorus mines in Western Sahara - http://bit.ly/2IFv8kC
Magazine about 350th Anniv of Phosphorus Discovery - http://bit.ly/2wLw0i3
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Credits (and Twitter handles):
Script Writer & Narrator: Alex Reich (@alexhreich)
Video Illustrator: Jessika Raisor (@jessika_arts)
Video Director: Kate Yoshida (@KateYoshida)
With Contributions From: Henry Reich, Ever Salazar, Peter Reich, David Goldenberg, Julin Gmez, Sarah Berman, Arcadi Garcia Rius
Music by: Nathaniel Schroeder: http://www.soundcloud.com/drschroeder
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References:
Amundson, R., et al 2015. Soil and human security in the 21st century. Science, 348(6235), 1261071. http://bit.ly/2R0dRXe

Bailey, J. Pers. comm. Feb 2019

Chowdhury, R. B., et al. 2017. Key sustainability challenges for the global phosphorus resource, their implications for global food security, and options for mitigation. J. of Cleaner Prod., 140, 945-963. http://agri.ckcest.cn/ass/NK001-20170130004.pdf

CIA. The World Factbook. Country Comparison: Crude Oil - Proved Reserves. Accessed Jan 2019. http://bit.ly/2KBYmVe

Cooper, J., et al. 2011. The future distribution and production of global phosphate rock reserves. Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 57, 78-86. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2011.09.009

Cordell, D., et al. 2009. The story of phosphorus: global food security and food for thought. Global env change, 19(2), 292-305. 10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2008.10.009

Cordell, D., & White, S. 2014. Life's bottleneck: sustaining the world's phosphorus for a food secure future. Ann Rev of Env & Res, 39, 161-188. 10.1146/annurev-environ-010213-113300

Cordell, D., & White, S. 2015. Tracking phosphorus security: indicators of phosphorus vulnerability in the global food system. Food Sec, 7(2), 337-350. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12571-015-0442-0

Elser, J., & Bennett, E. 2011. Phosphorus cycle: a broken biogeochemical cycle. Nature, 478(7367), 29. http://bit.ly/2WvUark

Filippelli, G. M. 2011. Phosphate rock formation and marine phosphorus geochemistry: the deep time perspective. Chemosphere, 84(6), 759-766. http://bit.ly/2X0mTcf

MacDonald, G. K., et al. 2011. Agronomic phosphorus imbalances across the world's croplands. PNAS, 108(7), 3086-3091. https://www.pnas.org/content/pnas/108/7/3086.full.pdf

Peterson, H. Pers comm. Jan 2019

Rosen, C. Pers comm. Jan 2019

Sattari, S. Z., et al. 2012. Residual soil phosphorus as the missing piece in the global phosphorus crisis puzzle. PNAS, 109(16), 6348-6353. https://www.pnas.org/content/pnas/109/16/6348.full.pdf

Statista.com. Rare earth reserves worldwide by country 2018. Accessed Jan 2019. http://bit.ly/2xdjqIW

Tilman, D., et al. 2002. Agricultural sustainability and intensive production practices. Nature, 418(6898), 671. http://bit.ly/2KCL3To

NOTE: Venezuela actually has 18% and Saudi Arabia has 16% of global oil reserves, not the other way around