Why this project
Coastal councils, community groups and researchers all need to know how fast beaches and dunes are changing. Measurements exist, but they are scattered, use different methods and are often hard to get. IMEALL sets up consistent monitoring at twelve contrasting sites and publishes the results openly.
What we measure
- Beach profiles along fixed transects (RTK-GNSS)
- Dune shape and volume from drone photogrammetry
- Daily shoreline position from fixed cameras at two sites
- Saltmarsh edge position from archival and new aerial images
- Wave and water-level conditions during storms (from open hindcasts)
Work packages
| Package | Focus | Lead (fictional) |
|---|---|---|
| WP1 | Field monitoring at 12 sites | Ardnagh University |
| WP2 | Remote sensing: drone and satellite | Lough Bree Institute of Technology |
| WP3 | Storm and wave modelling | Skerrin Marine Laboratory |
| WP4 | Engagement and open data | Northlight Geomatics Ltd |
Timeline
| When | Milestone |
|---|---|
| Mar 2025 | Project start; study sites confirmed |
| Apr 2026 | First open data release |
| Feb 2027 | Stakeholder forum and mid-term review |
| Feb 2028 | Final data release and project report |
Open data
Every survey is published under a CC BY 4.0 licence with a methods note, in formats that open in a spreadsheet or a mapping tool. See the document library.
Funding
IMEALL is funded by the National Coastal Research Programme (fictional), 2025–2028.