Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham appointed Hannah Riseley-White to lead the Interstate Stream Commission.
Riseley-White has been overseeing the agency since the former director, Rolf Schmidt-Peterson, retired in April. Riseley-White has served as the deputy director since 2020 and first joined the ISC in 2014 in the agency’s Pecos Bureau.
“Planning our water future has never been more important than it is today,” Lujan Grisham said in a press release. “Director Riseley-White brings experience and perspective to the office that will prove crucial to protecting our waters for future cultural, recreational, and economic use.”
The ISC is tasked with investigating, protecting, conserving and developing the state’s waters.
It includes a nine member commission. Eight of those members are appointed by the governor, while the state engineer serves as the ninth member and as the commission’s secretary. The state engineer is also appointed by the governor.
As ISC director, Riseley-White will also serve as assistant state engineer.
“I have every confidence that Director Riseley-White’s expertise in water management will serve all New Mexicans as our agency continues to tackle water challenges in the face of a changing climate,” State Engineer Mike Hamman said in the press release. “Her extensive knowledge of the state’s water resources as well as the administrative mechanisms and executive and legislative operations so critical to effective management are key to protecting our water resources for future generations.”
