Alliance Reps Address Record Crowd at Colorado Water Congress

The Colorado Water Congress (CWC) Annual Summer Conference drew record attendance this year, and the Family Farm Alliance was front and center. Three Alliance Board Members joined incoming Executive Director Samantha Barncastle (pictured here), who delivered her first official public remarks on behalf of the organization.

“This was an energizing way to begin my service as Executive Director,” Ms. Barncastle said. “The conference brought together policymakers, farmers, and community leaders at a time when the stakes for Western water could not be higher. It was an honor to represent the Alliance and to listen and learn from so many perspectives.”

Alliance Board Member Eamon O’Toole also took the stage, serving on a panel focused on agricultural water use. The Little Snake River watershed where his family’s Ladder Ranch is located only received an inch of rain this year. In his remarks, he defended and touted the wetlands that his ranch’s irrigation supports.

“I create habitat with flood irrigation,” he said. “For me the ducks and other waterfowl are just as important as my crop.”

CLICK HERE to download the PDF Version of the September 2025 edition of the “Monthly Briefing”, where you can read more about this, and these other important issues to Western water users, from a perspective that you won’t find anywhere else:

• Women in Water in the West
• Court Strikes ESA Protections for Lesser Prairie Chicken
• Bipartisan Snow Water Forecasting Bill Officially Introduced
• Alliance Welcomes Samantha Barncastle in Transition
• 2025 Annual Conference to Spotlight Future of Western Water
• Senate Advances Key Trump Nominees Ahead of Recess
• FWS Pauses Blanket ESA Rule
• New E.O. Tightens Oversight of Federal Grants
• C. Funding Fights Intensify
• MAHA Commission Report Delayed
• Advances Infrastructure, Reassesses Delta Management
• BOR Opens Small Storage Program Funding Opportunity
• NEPA Authority in Flux as Agencies Roll Back Procedures
• La Nina Watch Raises Hopes for Northwest Drought Relief
• Nebraska Sues Colorado Over South Platte River Water
• Shifting Currents: People, Policy and Platforms
• A Big “Thank You” to our New and Supporting Members!

Please do not hesitate to contact dan@familyfarmalliance.org if you have any difficulties downloading the September 2025 “Monthly Briefing”.