Ocean Dumping Research Trends Under the London Convention and Protocol Governance Framework: A Scientometric Analysis

Abstract

Bibliometric studies on ocean dumping have mostly focused on limited waste types such as plastic debris and marine litter and lack structural analyses encompassing broader ocean dumping issues. Thus, this study conducted a scientometric analysis to examine the development of ocean dumping research under the governance of the London Convention and Protocol (LC/LP), with the aim of identifying major research themes and patterns of international collaboration. A total of 865 Science Citation Index Expanded and Social Sciences Citation Index articles indexed in the Web of Science database were analyzed in terms of publication trends, national and institutional productivity, co-authorship networks, and keyword co-occurrence. The results indicate that the evolution of ocean dumping research has been closely linked to the implementation of LC/LP and the emergence of key global issues, particularly the growing attention to plastic pollution and climate change since the late 2010s. Five main thematic clusters were identified: (1) pollutants in sediments, (2) international conventions and regulatory policies, (3) carbon capture and marine geoengineering, (4) toxicity and ecological effects, and (5) hazardous military waste. The analysis also revealed a concentration of research leadership among a few developed countries, such as the United States and the United Kingdom, along with noticeable disparities in regional collaboration. This study provides a comprehensive overview of the structure of ocean dumping research and offers valuable insights into strengthening future marine environmental governance and policy responses.

Keywords: Ocean dumping, London Protocol (LP), London Convention (LC), Scientometric analysis, Bibliometric analysis