The head of the federal agency that oversees water-sharing agreements between the U.S. and Mexico was pushed to resign this week by the Trump administration.
Maria Elena Giner helped manage Mexico’s portion of the Colorado River.
Giner ran the International and Boundary Water Commission, or IBWC for nearly four years.
During that time, she signed an agreement to reduce Mexico’s take on the shrinking Colorado River. Seven U.S. states are working with Mexico to come up with new rules for sharing its water by 2026.
In a post on LinkedIn, Giner said her role at the IBWC was the hardest job she ever had, but the most rewarding.
She’s being replaced by Chad McIntosh, a President Donald Trump appointee. He spent nearly two decades running environmental policy for the Ford Motor Company. He also held a position in the Environmental Protection Agency during the first Trump administration.
Earlier in April, the U.S. denied Mexico’s request for Colorado River water for the first time since the two countries signed a water-sharing treaty in 1944.
The Trump administration said it would deny a special request to deliver Colorado River water to Tijuana.
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