Evolution of ecological indicators in the assessment of restoration of mining‐degraded riparian forests: a global bibliometric analysis (1990–2024)

Abstract

The restoration of mining‐degraded riparian forests faces challenges due to structural, compositional, and functional impacts on these ecosystems. The demand for effective monitoring requires an understanding of how ecological indicators have been applied to assess post‐mining restoration success. To evaluate the restoration of riparian forests in mined areas based on scientific articles published in recent decades (1990–2024), seeking to identify temporal trends, geographic distribution, restoration methods, and patterns of integration among compositional, structural, and functional indicators. A total of 101 articles selected from international databases were analyzed. Data were extracted to evaluate temporal and geographic distribution, journals, mineral types, restoration methods, and categories of ecological indicators. Publications increased markedly from 2020 onward, with China, the United States, Brazil, and Australia as leading contributors. Functional indicators predominated (87.3% in recent studies), with a progressive increase in the integration of composition, structure, and function. Seedling planting was the most frequent restoration method (48.3%). Indicator selection varied according to restoration method and mineral type, with integrated approaches more common in metallic mining, particularly gold. The field has evolved from the use of isolated indicators to multidimensional assessments. Methodological variation persists across restoration methods and mineral types, highlighting the need for standardization to enable robust comparisons.