Longtime Lawrence recycling leader Mollie Mangerich has lost her job in Spokane, Wash., following a political shake-up in the city.

Mangerich was fired as Spokane’s solid waste director after a new mayor took over in the Washington community, according to a newspaper report in the Spokesman Review in Spokane.

Mangerich previously was Lawrence’s waste reduction and recycling supervisor, and was an 11-year employee with the city before leaving to take the Spokane job in February 2007.

According to the Spokesman Review, Mangerich’s original appointment was controversial. The previous mayor appointed Mangerich, but the appointment was approved on a 4-3 vote. Some commissioners believed the interim director should have received the job over Mangerich.

Attempts by the Spokesman Review to reach Mangerich for comment were unsuccessful.