Charting the currents of environmental concern: a decades-spanning scientometric analysis of riverine debris

Abstract Debris in water bodies, particularly rivers, is a major environmental concern, with Southeast Asia contributing around a third of global debris pollution in 2015. This debris poses severe ecological risks, including entanglement and ingestion, which can lead to biodiversity loss. Despite extensive research on marine debris, there has been a lack of scientometric reviews using tools like CiteSpace to analyze riverine debris, especially in Southeast Asia. Thus, this study aims to explore research trends on riverine debris by analyzing Scopus-indexed articles from 1995 to 2024, identifying 156 relevant articles and exploring the monitoring effort. CiteSpace analysis reveals that Indonesia leads Southeast Asia in riverine debris research with 79 publications, followed by Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam. The studies primarily span Environmental Science, Earth and Planetary Sciences, and Agricultural and Biological Sciences. Key research has been conducted in Indonesia, Vietnam, and the Philippines, emphasizing the urgent need for improved waste management. These studies focus on debris composition, the effects of increased plastic use during the COVID-19 pandemic, and future waste projections, underscoring the need for targeted interventions to address environmental impact.