From fragmentation to integration: A review of data–model integration in land subsidence research

Land subsidence, the sinking of the Earth’s surface, is a multi-faceted hazard driven by both natural and anthropogenic factors, and poses significant risk to environments, ecosystems, and society. Despite decades of growing research output, substantial gaps persist between investigations on the diversity of causes, reflected in data and model insufficiency. These gaps hinder the understanding of the issue and impede the effectiveness of mitigation measures. Many studies have urged to include all identified subsidence processes acting in a single area in an integral framework, for which a complex analysis has not systematically been outlined before. Therefore, we focus here on bridging the gaps between various technical research disciplines involved. We stress the urgency for an integral approach that combines observations with subsurface information of all known subsidence processes in an area, and we appeal for utilizing them in physics-guided data integrations. Only then can all subsidence drivers be understood, and effective mitigation measures designed. We outline the elements for an integral approach in categorical tables and schematized figures, and we discuss the main opportunities and challenges in a stepwise workflow. Leveraging these opportunities naturally leads to more robust, scalable, and policy-relevant solutions and fosters a more sustainable future.