Phosphate in Idaho

Trent Clark with  the Bayer Co. visited the IFB house of delegates to encourage idaho farmers and ranchers to submit comments on the Caldwell Cayon phosphate mine that they would like to open up. In his appeal, Clark made some observations regarding humanitarian issues and sustainability."We have pending, a comment period, on the opening of a phosphate mine. This would be a mind that supplies all of the elemental phosphorus on this side of earth and if we don't do this here in the United States, then we become dependent on phosphorus that is supplied by peasants carrying wicker baskets on their backs and not only is that not very environmentally sustainable but there is a terrible record of accidents and injuries in that business and it is not low-cost. So for farmers we want to have high quality low cost right here in the United States. We need to support doing the jobs of mining in an environmentally responsible way which is why we are asking all farmers to chime in and file a comment saying let's do it, let's do it right but let's do it here.

Phosphate plays a series of functions in the plant metabolism and is one of the essential nutrients required for plant growth and development.