Increased concentration of livestock and concerns for manure and fertilizer phosphorus (P) management present producers with the challenge of understanding P losses to surface waters. This article continues a series that aids producers with improving land and P management to reduce environmental concerns related to P transport and losses to surface waters. Phosphorus is a major nutrient for aquatic plant growth and is often a limiting nutrient in freshwater systems. P abundance in Iowa\u27s surface waters produces aquatic plant overgrowth, primarily of algae. Plants and algae use much of the oxygen in water as they die and decompose, resulting in oxygen shortages that are detrimental to many aquatic organisms
