Team Member Spotlight
Arian Cueto Bergner
Project Manager | Montréal, QC
I joined Lasalle | NHC as a project engineer in 2014 after seven years in municipal engineering and international development, with the desire to strengthen my technical expertise in hydraulics. Since then, I have had the chance to work on an incredibly varied array of projects including physical models of powerhouse intakes and river diversions and numerical models of lakes, rivers, and stormwater systems. I have also participated in environmental monitoring programs and ice studies. At Lasalle | NHC, I have been challenged on a professional level like never before as I work with renowned experts who strive for excellence in every project. The work environment has made these challenges exciting instead of overwhelming though, as project managers create a respectful atmosphere with a level of camaraderie that you would be hard-pressed to find elsewhere.
On a personal level, I am mom to two very active and excited little girls. As a woman working in STEM, it is very important to me to open their eyes to all possibilities and challenge stereotypes that children are faced with from a young age, while embracing the fact that, sometimes, we all just want to wear a pink tutu.
Alex Wittmershaus, EIT
Junior Engineer | Bellingham, WA
Before joining NHC in June 2022, I got my BS in Environmental Engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Platteville and my MS in Civil Engineering from Colorado State University. My research at CSU focused on live-bed failure modes of bendway weirs and rock vanes in alluvial channels. I used a scaled physical model of a reach representative of the Middle Rio Grande and other mid-sized rivers to conduct experiments for my study. My primary interests are in river restoration, fisheries/fish passage engineering, and physical modeling—but I love working on most waterway projects. I was drawn to NHC by the employee-oriented work culture, as well as by the variety of work and the multi-disciplinary science-based approaches that we use to meet our clients’ water resources needs.
Outside of work I enjoy a variety of outdoor activities including running, biking (road and mountain), triathlons, camping, hiking, fishing, exploring northwestern Washington, and going to visit my family in Minnesota and Wisconsin.
Graeme Vass, P.Eng
Hydrotechnical Engineer | North Vancouver, Canada
I graduated from Queen’s University in 2011 and started my career working on hydrotechnical projects within the mining sector. I quickly realized that I wanted to work for a company that specialized in hydrotechnical services and started with NHC in 2013. Within the first year, I worked on projects varying from bank erosion and scour protection in river and coastal applications to fish habitat enhancement and stormwater management. Since then, I have pursued projects associated with scour and bank protection for infrastructure varying from small bridges, culverts, and pipeline crossings to major bridge crossings, watermain and sewer crossings, and dike upgrades. While working with NHC, I’ve had the opportunity to travel to Bangladesh and work on a large-scale bank protection project along the Jamuna River but also work on projects local to my home in Squamish, BC. Outside of work I enjoy hiking in the mountains and “delighting” my family with impromptu discussions on the hydraulics of any stream or river we encounter.