Brenda Burman, Salt River Project’s director of Water Strategy and executive water policy adviser, is leaving Arizona for Washington D.C. after being confirmed by the U.S. Senate Thursday night.

She will be the first woman commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) in the department’s 115-year history.

Burman was nominated at the end of June to lead the agency.

“The men and women of Reclamation have helped the West work through our most difficult water issues for more than a hundred years," Burman said. "I look forward to working with Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke and the administration and with Reclamation’s contractors, partners and customers to solve our most pressing water issues.”

BOR is responsible for managing dams and reservoirs, ensuring agricultural and residential users have water, as well as producing power from hydroelectric power plants.