Article Retraction & Withdrawal

The Tropical Environmental Engineering and Management (TEEM) Journal is committed to the integrity and accuracy of the environmental engineering and scientific record. As part of this commitment, TEEM adheres to the highest standards of ethical publishing practices. This policy statement outlines the circumstances under which articles published in TEEM may be retracted or withdrawn, detailing the processes involved in preserving the trust and accountability of the academic community.

Definitions

  • Retraction: The formal notification and removal of previously published work due to significant errors, ethical breaches, plagiarism, or other serious issues that invalidate its content or findings.
  • Withdrawal: The removal of an article from TEEM at the request of the authors before or shortly after its publication due to significant errors discovered or ethical issues.

Grounds for Retraction or Withdrawal

  • Retraction is considered under the following circumstances:
    • Discovery of significant inaccuracies or errors that change the outcomes or conclusions of the published work.
    • Evidence of unethical research practices, including but not limited to, data fabrication, falsification, plagiarism, or breaches in human or animal research ethics.
    • Infringements upon copyright or publication rights.
    • Situations where authorship criteria are found to have been violated significantly.
  • Withdrawal is considered if:
    • The authors find critical errors in their published work before it has been cited or utilized by the wider community, and request its removal.
    • Ethical or legal issues are identified, necessitating immediate removal of the work from publication.

Procedure

  1. Initiation: Concerns about articles may be raised by readers, authors, or editors. A preliminary assessment is conducted by the Editor-in-Chief in consultation with the editorial board.
  2. Investigation: A thorough investigation will follow, adhering to the guidelines provided by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). This may involve dialogue with the authors and peer reviewers.
  3. Decision: Based on the investigation, the editorial board will decide on the appropriate action. If retraction or withdrawal is warranted, TEEM will proceed with the publication of a formal notice.
  4. Notification: A retraction or withdrawal notice will be published in the journal, detailing the reasons for the action and maintaining the link to the original article. The original article will be marked clearly to indicate its retracted or withdrawn status.

Notices

  • Notices of retraction or withdrawal will be linked directly from the original article and listed in the table of contents of the issue in which they appear.
  • The notices will clearly state the reason for the retraction or withdrawal and will be freely accessible to all readers.

Archiving

  • The original article will remain available in the TEEM archives, marked as retracted or withdrawn, to maintain the integrity of the academic record. However, it will be clearly indicated that the article is no longer considered part of the scholarly literature.

Appeals

  • Authors may appeal the decision of retraction or withdrawal by providing compelling evidence to the Editor-in-Chief. The appeal will be considered by an independent committee appointed by the journal.

Implementation

This policy is effective immediately and applies to all articles published in the Tropical Environmental Engineering and Management (TEEM) Journal. TEEM reserves the right to update this policy as necessary to adapt to evolving standards of ethical publishing.

By upholding this policy, TEEM ensures the reliability and integrity of the work published within its pages, maintaining the trust of the academic community it serves.