Barbara was raised in Lakewood, Colorado, the third of four children born to a wonderful set of parents. They taught her to be honest, hard-working, thrifty, and curious. Summers were spent at their mountain home or climbing Colorado’s Fourteeners; winters were spent skiing and snowshoeing. Barbara earned a degree in journalism from Colorado State University in Fort Collins. After graduation, she was one of 12 journalism majors in the country to be selected as a Pulliam Fellow in Indianapolis. However, her heart was still in Colorado, so she accepted a job with the Durango Herald. While there, she wrote about life in the Southwest and created an environmental column, for which she won an award for best column in the state.
The tragic wildfires have shown us that climate change needs to be addressed now before these tragedies continue to ravage our beautiful state and displace Colorado families.
One of the biggest concerns we on the Western Slope share is our diminishing water level. Not only does it impact our farmers and towns, but also our economy and environment.
The largest threat to our water security is trans-mountain diversion projects, which pull Western Slope water to the Front Range. This next year will find me re-evaluating the diversions, and continuing to pass legislation that prioritizes water storage in aquifers and reservoirs statewide.
I have also been working with our farmers to focus on crops that are low-water intake and have a high monetary yield. The most notable of these is the growing hemp industry.
Because this crop requires less water and less overhead, it can be a boon to our current and future farmers, helping them become more financially and environmentally secure.
Many people are concerned about our public lands, I want to reaffirm my support for our beautiful state and stand ready to continue bi-partisan work preventing the selling of, or development on, our protected lands.