FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: December 11, 2007                              

DRI hires Surface Water Hydrologist
Dong Chen studying sediment transport and bank erosion in rivers

LAS VEGAS – Dong Chen has joined the Desert Research Institute as an Assistant Research Professor specializing in Surface Water Hydrology.

“Dong comes to DRI with research experience on the effects of sediment transport into Lake Mead when the Las Vegas Wash floods,” said Stephen Wells, DRI President. “While much of our work takes place on other continents, his research is a good example of how DRI addresses important issues closer to home.”

Chen’s area of expertise is in modeling hydrodynamic sediment transport and river geomorphological change in rivers. He is currently working on an urban flood demonstration project for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that is looking at sediment transport in the Las Vegas Wash, Rio Salado in Arizona and Rio Grande in New Mexico.

He received his PhD in Hydrologic Sciences from the University of Nevada, Reno, his Masters degree in Civil Engineering from the China Institute of Water Resource and Hydropower Research. He earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Civil Engineering from Wuhan University of Hydraulic and Electric Engineering.

# # #

All DRI news releases available at: http://news.dri.edu/

Note to Reporters and Editors: DRI, the nonprofit research campus of the Nevada System of Higher Education, strives to be the world leader in environmental sciences through the application of knowledge and technologies to improve people’s lives throughout Nevada and the world.