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Analysis of microplastics risk assessment research worldwide in the soil ecosystem: a scientometric review
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This review pulls together years of scientific research on how tiny plastic particles (microplastics) build up in soil, affecting everything from crops we eat to the microbes that keep soil healthy, and how that pollution could eventually affect human health. The big takeaway: while scientists agree microplastics in soil are a growing concern, the tools used to measure just how risky they are still vary widely and aren't standardized, meaning we don't yet have a clear, consistent picture of the actual danger. This matters because until researchers agree on better measurement methods, it's hard to know how worried we should really be about microplastics in our food and environment.
Microplastic pollution has emerged as a critical environmental issue, extending beyond aquatic systems to significantly impact soil ecosystems and pose potential risks to human health. This research aims to analyze the global evolution of microplastic risk assessment research through a scientometric approach. Data was collected from the Scopus database using a structured search strategy, and analyzed using VOSviewer, Bibliometrix, and CiteSpace to identify publication trends, keyword co-occurrence networks, and thematic evolution. The results reveal a marked increase in research output since 2020, with a transition from early descriptive studies on microplastic occurrence (2013–2016) toward mechanistic and integrated risk assessment frameworks (2021–2025). Key research clusters include physicochemical processes such as adsorption and transport in porous media, soil accumulation and land-use impacts, microbial interactions analyzed through metagenomics, plant–microplastic interactions affecting crop productivity, and emerging concerns related to human health exposure. Furthermore, widely used indices such as Pollution Load Index Polymer Hazard Index and Potential Ecological Risk Index demonstrate variability in risk estimation, highlighting the lack of methodological standardization. Overall, the research concludes that microplastic risk assessment has evolved into a multidisciplinary and increasingly complex field, requiring the development of standardized, multi-compartment, and predictive frameworks to support environmental management and sustainability-oriented decision-making.
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Microplastics in soils: A review of methods, occurrence, fate, transport, ecological and environmental risks
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This review examines the sources, detection methods, and environmental behavior of microplastics in soils, an area that has received far less attention than marine microplastic pollution. Researchers found that microplastics interact with soil properties and organisms in complex ways, potentially entering the human food chain. The study calls for standardized methods and more research into how these tiny plastic particles move through and affect terrestrial ecosystems.
Microplastics in soils: assessment, analytics and risks
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This review examines microplastic prevalence, analytical methods, and risks in soils, finding that terrestrial microplastic contamination has received far less attention than marine accumulation despite comparable or greater abundance. Researchers evaluated current difficulties in soil microplastic sampling, isolation, and identification and called for standardised methodologies to assess ecological and human health risks.
Global soil microplastic assessment in different land-use systems is largely determined by the method of analysis: A meta-analysis
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This meta-analysis pooled data from 89 studies to measure microplastic levels in soils across different land uses worldwide. A key finding is that reported microplastic concentrations vary wildly depending on the testing method used, making it hard to compare studies. This highlights that before we can truly understand how much microplastic is in the soil that grows our food, scientists need to agree on standardized measurement methods.
Beyond counting: a perspective on advancing soil microplastic monitoring in terrestrial ecosystems for risk assessment
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Scientists know a lot about microplastic pollution in oceans and rivers, but far less about how much is in our soil, which matters because that's where our food grows. This review paper argues that simply counting plastic particles in dirt isn't enough; researchers also need to study what chemicals these plastics carry, what germs might hitch a ride on them, and how their size and shape affect the risks they pose before we can truly understand the danger to ecosystems and, ultimately, to us.
Global perspective of ecological risk of plastic pollution on soil microbial communities
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This review examined how plastic pollution affects soil microbial communities worldwide, looking at factors like plastic type, size, and soil conditions. The researchers highlight that current studies often use unrealistically high plastic concentrations and short exposure times, making it hard to predict real-world impacts. They call for more field-based research, especially on nanoplastics and their effects on soil food webs and ecosystem functions.
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