Abstract:

Growing awareness exists regarding the dangers posed by emerging contaminants (ECs) to terrestrial ecosystems and human health. This study reviewed ecological risk assessment studies on ECs, emphasizing their environmental presence, toxicological effects, behavior, and potential negative impacts on soil and terrestrial ecosystems. The work aims to identify key trends, research hotspots, and gaps to provide policy recommendations, inform regulatory frameworks, and suggest future research directions for the sustainable management of ECs in terrestrial environments. A systematic literature review was conducted using the Web of Science database, selecting studies from the past decade related to ECs, soil, terrestrial ecosystems, and ecological risk assessment. A total of 450 documents were analyzed using VOSviewer and CiteSpace to visualize key research patterns. Results indicate a 26.26% annual growth in publications, highlighting increasing scholarly interest. Citation analysis identifies China, the USA, and Italy as leading contributors, with Switzerland exhibiting the highest citation impact per article. Co-authorship network analysis reveals key researchers and collaboration clusters, though cross-group interactions remain limited. Institutional analysis underscores the dominance of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, with notable global partnerships from CSIC (Spain) and King Saud University. Journal analysis highlights Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry and Journal of Environmental Monitoring as highly influential sources. Temporal keyword trends indicate a shift toward ecological risk assessment and contaminant interactions. The study underscores the need for advanced monitoring techniques to manage ECs. Understanding broader ecological impacts, including ecosystem responses and bioaccumulation, is crucial for informed environmental management and policy-making. The findings have significant implications for environmental policy, management strategies, and mitigation measures to protect ecosystem and human health.