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Agent-Based Residential Water Use Behavior Simulation and Policy Implications: A Case-Study in Beijing City

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Abstract

Residential water use constitutes a major part of urban water demand, and has be gaining importance in the urban water supply. Considering the complexity of residential water use system, an agent-based social simulation, i.e. the Residential Water Use Model (RWUM), is developed in this paper to capture the behavioral characteristics of residential water usage. By disaggregating total water demands down to constituent end-uses, this model can evaluate heterogeneous consumer responses on water, taking into account the factors of market penetration of water-saving technologies, regulatory policies, economic development, as well as social consciousness and preferences. Also, uncertainty analysis technique is innovatively applied in this agent-based model for parameter calibration and model robust testing. According to the case study in Beijing, this model can provide insights to water management agency in evaluating different water usage polices, as well as estimations for potential water saving for future infrastructure development planning.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tsinghua University, 100084, Beijing, People’s Republic of China

    Junying Chu, Can Wang & Jining Chen

  2. Engineering Research Center for Water Resources & Ecology Ministry of Water Resource P. R China, No. 20 Chegongzhuang West Road, Haidian District, 100044, Beijing, China

    Hao Wang

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  1. Junying Chu
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  2. Can Wang
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  3. Jining Chen
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  4. Hao Wang
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Correspondence to Can Wang.

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Chu, J., Wang, C., Chen, J. et al. Agent-Based Residential Water Use Behavior Simulation and Policy Implications: A Case-Study in Beijing City. Water Resour Manage 23, 3267–3295 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11269-009-9433-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11269-009-9433-2

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