Agent-based models of groundwater systems: A review of an emerging approach to simulate the interactions between groundwater and society

Abstract

Understanding how society can address and mitigate threats to groundwater sustainability remains a pressing challenge in the Anthropocene era. This article presents the first comprehensive and critical review of coupling Groundwater Models and Agent-Based Models (GW-ABMs) to address four key challenges: (1) adequately representing human behaviour, (2) capturing spatial and temporal variations, (3) integrating two-way feedback loops between social and physical systems, and (4) incorporating water governance structures. Our findings indicate a growing effort to model bounded rationality in human behaviour (Challenge 1 or C1) and a dominant focus on policy applications (C4). Future research should address data scarcity issues through Epstein’s Backward approach (C2), capture feedbacks via tele-coupled GW-ABMs, and explore other modelling techniques like Analytic Elements Groundwater Models (C3). We conclude with recommendations to thrust future GW-ABMs to the highest standards, aiming to enhance their acceptance and impact in decision-making and policy formulation for sustainable groundwater management.