SANTA FE – Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham on Tuesday made a key personnel appointment.

The governor announced:

–John D’Antonio: State Engineer

“With decades of resource engineering experience, John D’Antonio is uniquely qualified to direct the critical protection and management of our water resources,” Gov. Lujan Grisham said. “I have no illusions about the challenges we face, from climate change to infrastructure needs, from lawsuits to staffing levels. I know John will meet these challenges head on. He has met them before, and his experience demonstrates his firm grasp on the heart of the matter: There is no resource in New Mexico as precious as our water.”

John D’Antonio has most recently been deputy district engineer for programs and project management at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for almost eight years, spending time in Albuquerque, Atlanta and San Francisco; his work there followed eight years as New Mexico state engineer, from 2003 through 2011, and built on decades of intensive experience in water resources engineering and management in New Mexico. D’Antonio has served as Cabinet secretary of the New Mexico Environment Department; spent four additional years in the Office of the State Engineer, as both director of the Water Resource Allocation Program and District 1 supervisor of water resources; and worked as a project engineer and manager as well as chief of hydraulics, hydrology, sediment and floodplain management in a prior stint at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. With vast experience in building coalitions across state, local and tribal governments, and a history of highly skilled project management, D’Antonio returns to the state engineer role having most recently acted as WestFAST liaison, representing 12 federal agencies in day-to-day work with the Western States Water Council and leading two senior executive developmental projects: the South Atlantic Division’s Regional Business Directorate, with 3,100 staff members, and the South Pacific Division’s 2,400-staff Programs Directorate. As state engineer, D’Antonio implemented Active Water Resource Management in seven key basins, sought collaborative solutions involving myriad stakeholders so as to minimize and mitigate conflict, and approved innovative water rights permits, among other accomplishments. With numerous awards and recognitions, including exceptional performance ratings from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers every year from 2012-2016, D’Antonio holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from the University of New Mexico.