Practical Applications of Trash Racks and Anti-Vortex Devices: Instructors
Dustin Mortensen, PE
Freese and Nichols, Inc.
Principal, Water Resources Design
Dustin Mortensen is a principal and vice president at Freese and Nichols, Inc. and senior civil engineer with over 20 years of experience. He specializes in design, analysis, and inspections of hydraulic structures. His work included building physical models while at the Utah Water Research Laboratory, trash rack design for drop inlets, and water supply intakes. His work includes rehabilitation design of more than 20 flood retarding structures, including replacement of the intake structure or upgrades to the trash racks. He leads the Freese and Nichols computational fluid dynamics (CFD) team. He is currently the resident engineer for the construction of Leon Hurse Dam, creating Lake Ralph Hall and a new 7,600-acre water supply reservoir.
Chris Stoner
Freese and Nichols, Inc.
Engineer VII, Water Resources Design
Chris Stoner spent 37 years with the Natural Resources Conservation Service in Texas and Oklahoma. In his final position, he served as the state conservation engineer for Oklahoma for 16 years. Here, he was responsible for all conservation engineering activities in the state, including management of 2107 flood control dams. During his tenure as state conservation engineer, Chris approved 30 rehabilitation designs. In doing so, he built strong relationships with watershed sponsors and helped them navigate the planning, design, construction, and operation and maintenance of new and existing flood control dams. From his location in Stillwater, Oklahoma, Chris formed strong ties with the USDA-ARS Hydraulic Engineering Research Unit where much research involving dams, principal spillway designs, vegetated spillways and waterways, and armoring techniques were developed. Following his retirement from NRCS, Chris joined the Water Resources Division of Freese and Nichols in 2023. He is a graduate of Texas A&M University and a registered Professional Engineer in Texas and Oklahoma.
