Agent-Based Modeling of Low-Emission Fertilizer Adoption for Dairy Farm Decarbonisation using Empirical Farm Data

• URL: http://arxiv.org/abs/2605.03648v1
• Date: Tue, 05 May 2026 11:25:03 GMT
• Title: Agent-Based Modeling of Low-Emission Fertilizer Adoption for Dairy Farm Decarbonisation using Empirical Farm Data
• Abstract summary: This study proposes an agent-based nitrogen management framework to simulate low-emission adoption across 295 Irish dairy farms over a 15-year period.<n>The framework estimates sectoral greenhouse gas emissions, cumulative abatement, and private-social cost trade-offs.<n>This study provides an in silico policy laboratory for evaluating the robustness and diffusion speed of climate mitigation strategies prior to implementation.
• Score: 1.1744028458220426
• License: http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/
• Abstract: To understand complex system dynamics in dairy farming, it is essential to use modeling tools that capture farm heterogeneity, social interactions, and cumulative environmental impacts. This study proposes an agent-based modeling (ABM) framework to simulate nitrogen management and the adoption of low-emission fertilizer across 295 Irish dairy farms over a 15-year period. Using empirical data, the model represents farm communication through a social network, capturing peer influence and discussion group dynamics, where adoption probabilities are driven by social contagion, farm-scale characteristics, and policy interventions such as subsidies and carbon taxes. The framework estimates sectoral greenhouse gas emissions, cumulative abatement, and private-social cost trade-offs, using Monte Carlo simulation and sensitivity analysis to quantify uncertainty. The model shows strong agreement with observed adoption trajectories ($R^2 = 0.979$, RMSE = 0.0274) and is validated against empirical data using a Kolmogorov-Smirnov test (D = 0.2407, p < 0.001), indicating its ability to reproduce structural patterns in adoption behavior. Adoption dynamics are further characterized using a logistic diffusion model consistent with Rogers' innovation diffusion theory, capturing progression from early adoption to a saturation level of approximately 91%. By framing decarbonization as a socio-technical diffusion process rather than a purely economic optimization problem, this study provides an in silico policy laboratory for evaluating the robustness and diffusion speed of climate mitigation strategies prior to implementation.

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