Spillway Erodibility Investigation & Analysis: Instructors

Chris Stoner, PE
Freese and Nichols, Inc.
Engineer VII

Chris Stoner is a licensed professional engineer in Texas and Oklahoma with over 38 years of experience analyzing erosion and evaluating dams and spillways. Chris formerly served as the state conservation engineer for Oklahoma for nearly 16 years and has held various roles with the NRCS. Chris has supported or reviewed unlined spillway erosion analyses for dams across the United States. Chris has inspected countless numbers of unlined spillways following major storm events or as part of normal operation and maintenance activities. Chris built strong relationships with the Agricultural Research Service Agroclimate and Hydraulic Engineering Research Unit in Stillwater, Oklahoma where much of the research on soil erodibility analysis and standard design procedures were developed. These include Agricultural Handbook 667 – Design of Grass Lined Channels, the SITES and WinDam software programs, and guidelines for overtopping roller compacted concrete stepped spillway armoring.

Kyle Horsham, PE
Freese and Nichols, Inc.

Kyle Horsham is a licensed professional engineer in North Carolina with 6 years of experience. Kyle focuses on geotechnical analysis for dam evaluations and design. He has experience in estimating soil properties for erodibility analysis and developing earthen auxiliary spillway profiles used for both SITES and WinDAM C. His consulting experience includes geotechnical subsurface investigations and reporting, in-situ and laboratory testing, 2D and 3D seepage and slope stability modeling, H&H analysis, dam engineering, and retaining wall design.

Kyle Jacobs, PE
Freese and Nichols, Inc.
Engineer IV

Kyle Jacobs is a licensed professional engineer in North Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia with 7 years of experience. Kyle focuses on H&H analyses for dam evaluations and rehabilitation design, PMF analyses, and breach analyses. Kyle's modeling experience includes HEC-HMS, HEC-RAS, SITES, and WinDAM C. Kyle has developed spillway erodibility and H&H models for dams across the southeastern United States. 

Karl Visser, PE
Freese and Nichols, Inc.
Hydraulic Engineer

Karl is an experienced water resources engineer with deep expertise in auxiliary spillway erosion, dam breach analysis, and H&H design. He has provided technical guidance to federal, state and international users. Karl’s experience spans reviewing more than 200 dam rehabilitation projects nationwide, contributing to the 2019 update of the National Resources Conservation Service’s (NRCS) TR-60 Earth Dams and Embankments and mentoring the next generation of hydraulic engineers. He has also led training in various hydrology software, reviewed complex CFD models and co-led NRCS HEC-RAS efforts. Karl is known for communicating complex engineering concepts clearly, bringing technical depth and practical insight to water infrastructure challenges.