GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. — As drought, growth, and downstream demands squeeze the Colorado River harder than ever, one Mesa County Commissioner is heading straight into the lion’s den this week. Bobbie Daniel will walk into the Hyatt Regency Aurora conference center with a clear message: the Western Slope will not quietly watch its water get shipped east.
The Colorado Water Congress Annual Convention opens Wednesday, January 29, and runs through Friday. More than 700 water managers, lawmakers, farmers, and attorneys will pack the rooms. This year’s theme, “Storing for the Future,” hits the West Slope like a gut punch because everyone knows new storage often means new diversions to the Front Range.
Bobbie Daniel Carries Triple Leverage into the Room
Most commissioners attend as observers. Bobbie Daniel does not.
She sits on the Mesa County Board, the Colorado River District Board of Directors, and the Interbasin Compact Committee. That trifecta gives her a voice few others have when Front Range cities start floating new pipeline dreams.
“I’m not going to learn about decisions after they’re made,” Daniel told me Tuesday before heading to the airport. “We have some of the oldest, most senior water rights in the entire Colorado River basin. People want them. We have to be in every room where they’re discussed.”
Water Storage or Water Grab? The Real Conversation Everyone’s Having
The official agenda looks harmless: forest health, watershed resilience, funding for aging dams, atmospheric water projects.
Read between the lines and it’s raw.
Northern Front Range communities keep studying ways to pull more water across the Continental Divide. Every new reservoir pitch from Denver Water or Aurora raises alarm bells from Grand Junction to Glenwood Springs.
Daniel says forest management sessions matter more than people think. Thicker, healthier forests catch and hold more snow. Better snowpack means less need for expensive concrete storage and transmountain diversions.
“Healthy forests are water storage,” she said. “We keep saying it until they finally listen.”
Mental Health in Agriculture Gets Spotlight for First Time
In a historic move, the Water Congress added a Thursday panel on mental health and stress in farming and ranching.
Western Slope producers live with the constant fear of curtailment. One dry year or one new federal call on the Colorado River could shut off generations-old water rights.
“That panel is long overdue,” Daniel said. “We’re asking families to carry the weight of seven states and Mexico on their backs. We need to talk about what that does to people.”
Who Else from the Western Slope is Showing Up
This year’s attendance from the Colorado River headwaters region is stronger than usual:
- Cody Davis, Mesa County Commissioner District 1
- Andy Mueller, General Manager, Colorado River District
- Representatives from Garfield, Delta, Montrose, and Pitkin counties
- Multiple irrigation district managers
- Grand Valley Water Users Association leadership
They all carry the same talking point: protect existing uses first, then talk about growth.
What Mesa County Wants You to Know Before the Gavel Drops
Daniel laid it out plain.
“We are not anti-growth. We’re anti-theft.”
She points to the Shoshone water right purchase, the Colorado River District’s aggressive defense fund, and the growing unity among Western Slope counties as proof the region is done playing nice.
“Every gallon we save through efficiency stays here. Every new diversion takes food off our tables and jobs from our towns.”
As sessions begin Wednesday morning, one seat at the table will belong to a grandmother from Fruita who ranches, serves her county, and refuses to let anyone forget where Colorado’s water actually comes from.
The fight for the West Slope just walked into the room.
What do you think happens when Western Slope leaders finally draw a hard line? Drop your thoughts below and use #CWC2025 if you’re watching the conversation unfold online.
