Jonathan Dale

Dr Jonathan Dale portrait

Specialism

Tidal wetland management and restoration
  • Department Director for Postgraduate Research
  • Lecturer at undergraduate and postgraduate level
     

Areas of interest

  • Tidal wetland restoration
  • Coastal and estuarine management
  • Intertidal morphology
  • Unmanned aerial systems 
     

Postgraduate supervision

William Thurston. Project title: Restoring tidal wetlands in the upper estuary

Teaching

  • GV2STP Skills, Training and Project Design (Convenor)
  • GV3CEM / GVMCEM Coastal and Estuarine Management (Convenor)
  • GV1FC Field Class (contributor)

Research centres and groups

Environmental Science Research Division

Research projects

  • Rumney Great Wharf Polders
  • Saltmarsh restoration through unmanaged realignment
  • Water and Sustainable Heritage in Peru (WASH-PERU)

Background

Jonathan is a coastal and estuarine geomorphologist. His research focuses on the mechanisms driving the evolution and development of restored tidal wetlands, and management of intertidal environments more widely. In his research, Jonathan works closely with organisations such as the Environment Agency, Natural England and Natural Resources Wales.

Jonathan completed his PhD at the University of Brighton in 2018, where he subsequently worked in various research and teaching roles. In 2019, he moved to Coventry University before joining the University of Reading in 2022. He has been a Council Member of the Estuarine and Coastal Sciences Association since 2017 and will become President of the Association in 2027. He is an Associate Editor for the journal Sustainable Environment and an Editorial Board Member for the journal Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science.

Professional bodies/affiliations

President-elect of the Estuarine and Coastal Sciences Association

Selected publications

  • Dale, J., Ladd, C.J., Farrell, M., Kennedy, M.P., Ciappara, G., James, C. and Fairley, I., 2026. Hydrodynamic and sedimentary processes in sedimentation fields: the requirement for continued maintenance to preserve restored intertidal habitat. Journal of Environmental Management, 407, p.129798.
  • Burgess, H.M., Dale, J. and Smith, M.P., 2026. The impact of rain events on the supply and movement of fine sediment in engineered intertidal systems. Continental Shelf Research, 299, p.105674.
  • Dale, J. and Farrell, M., 2026. Sedimentation fields as a method of saltmarsh restoration: continuity of human influence on natural processes. Cambridge Prisms: Coastal Futures, 4, p.1-16.
  • Lewis, C., Dale, J., Neumann, J., Smyth, T. and Cloke, H., 2025. How successive meteotsunami and storm activity disrupts saltmarsh vegetation. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 325, p.109495.
  • Dale, J. and Arnall, A., 2024. Managed and unmanaged realignment as a nature-based solution to saltmarsh habitat loss: A sedimentary perspective. Nature-Based Solutions, 6, p.100166.
  • Seenath, A. and Dale, J., 2024. On the Bruun Rule suitability for modelling shoreline change. Ocean & Coastal Management, 255, p.107237.

Publications

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