| Institution: | 1. Plant Conservation and Population Biology, Department Biology, University of Leuven, , Leuven, B‐3001 Belgium;2. Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University, , Lancaster, LA14YQ United Kingdom;3. Department of Physiology and Biometrics, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Ghent, , Merelbeke, Belgium;4. Department of Environment, Earth and Ecosystems, Open University, , Milton Keynes, MK7 6AA United Kingdom;5. Division Soil and Water Management, Department Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Leuven, , Leuven, B‐3001 Belgium;6. Institute for Water and Wetland Research Radboud University, , Nijmegen, 6500 GL The Netherlands;7. B‐WARE Research Centre, Radboud University, , Nijmegen, 6525 ED The Netherlands;8. KWR Watercycle Research Institute, , Nieuwegein, NL‐3430 BB The Netherlands;9. Université de Bordeaux, , Talence, F‐33405 France;10. Laboratoire des Interactions Ecotoxicologie, Biodiversité et Ecosystèmes, UMR CNRS 7146, U.F.R. Sci. F.A., Université Paul Verlaine, , Metz, F 57070 France;11. Department of Environmental and Geographical Science, Manchester Metropolitan University, , Manchester, M15GD United Kingdom;12. Institute of Ecology, FB 2, University of Bremen, , Bremen, DE‐28359 Germany |
| Abstract: | Nutrient pollution presents a serious threat to biodiversity conservation. In terrestrial ecosystems, the deleterious effects of nitrogen pollution are increasingly understood and several mitigating environmental policies have been developed. Compared to nitrogen, the effects of increased phosphorus have received far less attention, although some studies have indicated that phosphorus pollution may be detrimental for biodiversity as well. On the basis of a dataset covering 501 grassland plots throughout Europe, we demonstrate that, independent of the level of atmospheric nitrogen deposition and soil acidity, plant species richness was consistently negatively related to soil phosphorus. We also identified thresholds in soil phosphorus above which biodiversity appears to remain at a constant low level. Our results indicate that nutrient management policies biased toward reducing nitrogen pollution will fail to preserve biodiversity. As soil phosphorus is known to be extremely persistent and we found no evidence for a critical threshold below which no environmental harm is expected, we suggest that agro‐environmental schemes should include grasslands that are permanently free from phosphorus fertilization. |
