Publication Ethics Regulations and Guidelines of the Journal of Groundwater
Hydrology
Introduction
The Journal of Groundwater Hydrology (“Chikasui Gakkaishi” in Japanese) is published by theJapanese Association of Groundwater Hydrology (“the JAGH”), a learned society founded in 1959
comprising scientists, engineers and those who are interested in groundwater related issues(approximately 650 members as of 2023). The founding concept of the JAGH, which remains its
purpose today, is to contribute to the following: 1) Advancement of the groundwater research,management, protection, development and education. 2) Providing a common meeting place forscientists, engineers, and those who are interested in groundwater related issues. 3) Collection ororganization and dissemination of information on groundwater science and technology. The JAGH islegally designated as a public interest corporation. Publication of the Journal of Groundwater
Hydrology is one of the ways the JAGH fulfills its objective of contributing to the development ofgroundwater science and technology. The Journal of Groundwater Hydrology is a scientific journal
covering various fields of groundwater hydrology. Most papers concern studies in Japan, but this isnot a strict limitation. Most papers, but not all, are written in the Japanese language (with an Englishlanguage abstract) but papers in English are also acceptable.
To enable the Journal of Groundwater Hydrology to continue to be published as a high-level journal,
it is essential that authors, the members of the Editorial Board, and referees all act in conformity withhigh ethical standards. Our ethics regulations ensure that all papers appearing in the Journal are theoriginal work of the authors and of high scientific value, and that all articles satisfy universal ethicalstandards and do not violate the rights of other persons (authors and others).
Publication Ethics Regulations of the Journal of Groundwater Hydrology
1．Author ethics（1）Papers must be original and must significantly contribute to progress in groundwater hydrology
and/or related fields.
（ 2 ）All authors must have contributed to the research, and all living authors shall jointly beresponsible for the contents of the paper.
（3）Manuscripts reporting the results of the same research must not be submitted to any other journal
while they are under consideration by the Journal of Groundwater Hydrology.
（4）Authors must cite all relevant past research conducted by themselves or others, and must providesufficient information to verify and evaluate the contents of the submitted manuscript.
（5）When citing works by others, authors must state the source, verify that it is accessible to readers,and observe the rights of the authors of the cited works.
（6）Critical comments on other work and critical citations are permitted, provided that the academicbasis for the criticism is stated. However, libelous or defamatory material, and/or personal
criticism, is unacceptable.
（7）Submitted manuscripts must not contain fabrication, falsification, or undocumented image
manipulation.
（8）Permission must be obtained to cite unpublished results, data, or ideas of other persons, andproper copyright procedures must be followed.
（9）Authors may not violate the rights of third persons who acted as research subjects, must maintainthe dignity of the subjects, and must not infringe on the life, health or privacy of the subjects.
（10）Authors are reminded that they are fully responsible if the contents of their paper violate thecopyrights of others or cause an ethical problem.
2．Referee ethics（1）Referees must immediately decline review requests if they have a personal vested interest orconflict of interest with respect to the author(s) and/or contents.
（2）Referees must review manuscripts objectively, while remembering that their review will not only
affect the judgment of whether to accept or reject the submission but may also have a major
impact on the further progress of studies by the author. Referees must finish their reviews by thedeadline. Subjective and illogical arguments must not be made in the review.
（3）Reviews must be expressed logically. The personal and intellectual independence of the author
must be respected, and no statements may impair the dignity of the author.
（4）Referees shall not disclose that they are serving as a referee and must respect the confidentialityof manuscripts, except that communication with the author or with a member of the Editorial
Board of the Journal of Groundwater Hydrology is permitted.

（5）Referees may not use part any of the contents of manuscripts until the paper has been published.
（ 6 ） Upon detecting the possibility of duplicate submission, plagiarism, fabrication and/or or
falsification of data, referees must report the fact to the Editorial Board without delay.
3．Ethics of the Editorial Board（1）The Editorial Board shall properly manage the Board and maintain the scientific objectivity of
all academic articles appearing in the Journal of Groundwater Hydrology, working together withauthors and referees.
（2）The Editorial Board must select the most appropriate referee(s) by considering their specialization.
Referees must be selected fairly in order to carefully avoid persons who may have a vested interestin the manuscript.
（3）Members of the Editorial Board shall not disclose information related to refereeing to a thirdperson, except another member of the Board.
（4）Upon receiving an objection from the author of a rejected submission, the Editorial Board shallinvestigate the validity of the objection without delay and communicate the results to the author
in the name of the Editorial Board. If the objection is appropriate, the Editorial Board must takemeasures for restoring the rights of the author without delay.
（5）Upon being informed by a referee of the possibility of duplicate submission, plagiarism, libel ordefamation, fabrication or falsification of data, or the possibility of infringement of any part ofthese rules, the Editorial Board shall take appropriate measures without delay.
（6）Upon finding duplicate submission, plagiarism, libelous or defamatory content, or fabrication orfalsification of data in a published paper, the Editorial Board shall take measures to retract thepaper without delay.
General Guidelines on Publication Ethics and Basic Facts on our Journal
We review generally accepted principles of publication ethics as implemented by our journal, towhich we expect all persons (authors, referees, and members of the Editorial Board) to strictly adhere.
In preparing this material we drew on the Guidelines for publication ethics of the Cambridge
University Press. We also review some basic facts about our journal.

Research integrity: Authors and all others are expected to fully adhere to high-level standards forhonesty, integrity, and transparency in research. They are expected to fully adhere to standards forretaining records, data, and specimens so they can respond in case questions are raised about theirpapers.
Editorial process: The Chief Editor of the Editorial Board (called “the editor” below), with the adviceof the Editorial Board and referees, has the sole authority and responsibility to make fair and honest
decisions regarding submitted manuscripts, without any outside influence.
Peer review: Referees are expected to conduct honest, fair, and timely reviews, and to maintainconfidentiality.
Authorship: All persons who should be listed as authors must be listed, and no persons who do notdeserve authorship should be listed. See the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) guidelines
for more details. All authors must have made significant contributions to the work; all living authors
must have participated in the writing of the paper, must have read and approved the final manuscript,
and must be responsible for all aspects of the contents. Deceased persons may be listed as authors,
but the date of death must be clearly specified.
Responsibilities of the corresponding author: The corresponding author is expected (1) to confirm that
all authors meet the criteria for authorship and that no persons meeting the authorship criteria havebeen omitted; (2) to confirm that all living authors have read and approved the manuscript before
submission; (3) to obtain conflict of interest information for all authors and send it to the editorialoffice; (4) to inform all living authors regarding reviews and other editorial correspondence; and (5)to respond appropriately if any questions are raised after the paper has been published.
Plagiarism: Plagiarism is strictly forbidden. All text from other works, including previous works
written by the author(s), must be clearly identified and cited, and quotation marks must be used asrequired.
Citation practices: All relevant work must be cited. Irrelevant works must not be cited (e.g., for thepurpose of improperly inflating citation statistics).
Duplicate publication: Duplicate publication in the Journal of Groundwater Hydrology is strictly
prohibited, except in cases where the editor has given permission in advance, the permission of theprior publisher has been obtained, and the republication is clearly stated in the manuscript.
Republication of a paper from the Journal of Groundwater Hydrology in another journal is strictlyprohibited, except in cases where the editor of the Journal of Groundwater Hydrology and of thesecond journal have given permission in advance, and the republication is clearly stated in themanuscript. If unauthorized duplicate publication is called to our attention after publication we will
ask the author to retract the paper and will notify the other journal(s).
Duplicate submission: Manuscripts that are identical or nearly identical to manuscripts that have beensubmitted to the Journal of Groundwater Hydrology may not be submitted to any other journal while
they are under consideration by the Journal of Groundwater Hydrology. If such cases are called toour attention we will ask the author to withdraw the manuscript and will notify the other journal(s).
Research involving humans: The privacy of human subjects must be respected. Please consult theeditor in advance of submission of a manuscript in the event of specific questions.
Conflict of interest: All potential conflicts of interest (e.g., funding sources) must be clearly disclosed
to the editorial office.
Libel, defamation, and personal criticism: Libelous or defamatory material cannot be published in ourjournal. Objective criticism of other work is appropriate, but personal criticism is not.
Retractions, corrections, and expressions of concern: We generally follow the COPE guidelines insuch matters. In the event questions are raised about particular papers, we will work with the author’s
institution to appropriately investigate and resolve such matters.
Fabrication, falsification, and image manipulation: Falsification and fabrication are strictly prohibited.
In the event image manipulation is conducted, the details of the manipulation and reasons therefor
must be clearly explained in the manuscript.
Research misconduct: We will work with the author’s institution to resolve misconduct allegations
related to papers in our journal. If misconduct is found to have occurred, papers will be retracted.
Publication: Our journal is published in a printed edition, and papers are also published on the JSTAGE site in electronic form. Authors are required to assign copyright to the Society. Permission
for reuse is available as specified on our home page.
Data and supporting evidence: Data and supporting evidence must be stored appropriately and must
be made available to other researchers following generally accepted practices. Authors areencouraged to make data available through institutional repositories.

Fees: No fees are required to submit or publish a manuscript. Fees are required in some cases (e.g., foroverlength manuscripts and manuscripts with color pages). See our web site for details.
Members of the Editorial Board: Listed on our web site.
http://www.jagh.jp/global/g/publ/journal_e.html
Publication Schedule: Four issues per year published near the end of Feb., May, Aug. and Nov.
Questions: Please contact the editorial office (chikasui@nifty.com).