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Research on ecosystem services of water conservation and soil retention: a bibliometric analysis

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Abstract

Water conservation and soil retention are two essential regulating services that are closely related, and their relationship might produce synergies or trade-offs. Distinguishing the current status and evolution of research in this field could provide a scientific foundation for subsequent research. “Water conservation” and “soil retention” were selected as keywords for a search of Web of Science for publications during 1976–2018. A total of 4489 periodical articles were obtained. Using bibliometric and social network analysis tools, the scientific output performance, national research contributions, potential hot topics, and connections between keywords and the levels of cooperation between countries at different stages were explored to reveal the related development trends. The results showed that the literature on water conservation and soil retention increased rapidly, especially after 2008. The USA, China, and India were the most productive countries, and the USA, the UK, and Canada were the most influential countries regarding international cooperation. Agriculture, water resource utilization, water–soil erosion, and ecosystem services were closely related topics, and the connections between these topics have increased since 1998. In addition to sustainability, the response of water conservation and soil retention to global environmental change, such as water resource management, land use, and land conservation, are potential emerging research hotspots.

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The datasets used and/or analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Professor Zhen Wang for his comments and suggestions on the revision of the manuscript.

Funding

This work was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2017YFC0505406) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (41877070).

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Conceptualization: Shuxia Yu; methodology: Jinsong Zhao; formal analysis and investigation: Sinuo Liu, Yin Lei; writing—original draft preparation: Sinuo Liu; writing—review and editing: Sinuo Liu, Shuxia Yu, Ling Wang; funding acquisition: Shuxia Yu; data curation: Sinuo Liu, Yin Lei; validation: Sinuo Liu, Jinsong Zhao; supervision: Shuxia Yu, Ling Wang.

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Liu, S., Lei, Y., Zhao, J. et al. Research on ecosystem services of water conservation and soil retention: a bibliometric analysis. Environ Sci Pollut Res 28, 2995–3007 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-020-10712-4

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