Low-grade rock phosphate enriched human urine as novel fertilizer for sustaining and improving agricultural productivity of Cicer arietinum

In order to sustain food production in a resource-scarce scenario it is vital that maximum utility is derived from available reserves while simultaneously promoting their recycling. Further, substantial value can be sourced if approaches are devised that utilize resources that were erstwhile considered wastes. To look towards alternative fertilization techniques, this study suggests a novel fertilizer combination of two waste products: low-grade Rock Phosphate (RP) tailing and human urine. It is demonstrated that the combined use of urine (nitrogen) and low-grade RP (phosphorous) can indeed act as a substitute to synthetic inorganic fertilizers. Crop trials were carried out for Cicer arietinum using RP enriched urine at various application rates on a red loamy soil (pH of 8.11). Observations made from plant growth response indicated that direct application of this fertilizer combination resulted in performance equivalent to mineral fertilizer Di-Ammonium Phosphate added in the same ratio. The use of RP enriched urine thus holds a lot of promise for simultaneous waste minimization, waste utilization, and improved resource-use efficiency.