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William Dietrich has been named the new port director and CEO of the Port of Brownsville by the Brownsville Navigation District Board of commissioners.
The board held the unanimous vote at its Aug. 7 meeting. The board had named Dietrich, the port’s police chief since July 2022, interim port director in December. He succeeds Eduardo Campirano, who stepped down Dec. 31 after serving as port director for 16 years. Dietrich is the ninth port director in the entity’s 88-year history.
“I would like to congratulate Mr. Dietrich and commend him on the progress happening at the Port of Brownsville,” said BND Chairman Esteban Guerra. “The unprecedented achievements at the port in recent years have positioned us for continued success. I am certain under Mr. Dietrich’s leadership the port will advance as a beacon of prosperity for the future.”
Dietrich worked for the Brownsville Police Department for 26 years before joining the port as police chief. He was part of BPD’s uniformed services command, investigative services command, special investigations unit and hazardous devices unit before retiring as commander in 2022.
Dietrich is a U.S. Army veteran and graduate of the Canadian Police College who holds a bachelor’s degree in science from what is now the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley and a master’s degree in leadership from Western Governor’s University.
“I am honored to continue serving the Port of Brownsville and would like to thank our (BND) Board of Commissioners for their confidence,” he said. “Alongside our port staff and under the guidance of the BND Board we will continue to carry out the port’s mission to bring economic opportunities for the benefit of our communities.”
The largest land-owning public port authority in the nation, the Port of Brownsville encompasses 40,000 acres and is the only deep-water seaport directly on the U.S.-Mexico border. It handles more steel bound for Mexico than any other U.S. port and is a major hub for ship recycling and shipbuilding.
In 2022, the port’s Foreign Trade Zone (FTZ No. 62), maintained its spot as the second highest ranking FTZ in the country in exported commodities, according to the FTZ Board. More than $8.2 billion in exported goods moved through the port that year. FTZ No. 62 has been ranked among the top FTZ’s in the United States — there are 193 of them — since 2012.
