Please Welcome Roland Ruiz as Edwards Aquifer Authority General Manager

Photo courtesy of the Edwards Aquifer Authority

Roland Ruiz is the new general manager of the Edwards Aquifer Authority.

He’s not exactly new to the job, as he’s been serving as interim general manager for a while, but Thursday the Edwards Aquifer Authority (EAA) officially selected Roland Ruiz as their new general manager.

Ruiz, who used to run communications at the Authority, stepped in as general manager in June, after Karl Dreher was abruptly placed on leave and then fired. The San Antonio Express-News reported at the time that the board voted 8 to 6 to terminate its contract with Dreher. Chairwoman Luana Buckner was quoted saying that Dreher “lacked the management skills to reach the goals of the board.”

“The board felt very positive about offering the full time general manager position to Mr. Ruiz,” EAA board chairman Luana Buckner said in a statement.  “He knows the region well and in his tenure with the EAA he has proven himself as a highly capable leader who can build relationships with our stakeholders across the region and represent the agency and its mission effectively.”

His background in communications will probably come in handy as well.

The EAA has been the center of a lot of attention in the past year both due to ongoing water shortages in the Edwards Aquifer, and because of the Authority’s involvement in a high profile State Supreme Court case. The EAA’s loss in that case changed the way Texas water rights are managed and enforced in the state.

The authority says that they’ll go through the formal steps of offering Ruiz a contract October 9. Ruiz has been with the authority since 2006.