The resilience of the phosphorus (P) cycling network is critical to ecosystem functioning and human activities. Although P cycling pathways have been previously mapped, a knowledge gap remains in evaluating the P network's ability to withstand shocks or disturbances. Applying principles of mass balance and ecological network analysis, we examine the network resilience of P cycling in China from 1600 to 2012. The results show that changes in network resilience have shifted from being driven by natural P flows for food production to being driven by industrial P flows for chemical fertilizer production. Urbanization has intensified the one-way journey of P, further deteriorating network resilience. Over 2000-2012, the network resilience of P cycling has decreased by 11% owing to dietary changes towards more animal-based foods. A trade-off between network resilience improvement and increasing food trade is also observed. These findings can support policy decisions for enhanced P cycling network resilience in China.

Biology Department Towson University Towson MD USA

CMCC Foundation Euro Mediterranean Center on Climate Change and Ca' Foscari University of Venice Venice Italy

Department of Chemical Engineering Tsinghua University Beijing P R China

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering University of Michigan Ann Arbor MI USA

Environmental Studies Masaryk University Brno Czech Republic

Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Environmental Pollution Control and Remediation Technology Guangzhou P R China

Institute of Environmental and Ecological Engineering Guangdong University of Technology Guangzhou P R China

International Institute for Applied System Analysis Laxenburg Austria

School of Business East China University of Science and Technology Shanghai P R China

School of Environmental Science and Engineering Sun Yat sen University Guangzhou P R China

State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control School of Environment Beijing Normal University Beijing P R China

The Bartlett School of Construction and Project Management University College London London UK

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Decreasing resilience of China's coupled nitrogen-phosphorus cycling network requires urgent action