Our Watersheds

What is a watershed?

A watershed is an area of land that takes all water that falls or drains into it, such as rain, snow and ground water, and moves it towards a common outlet, such as a river, basin, or ocean.

Healthy watersheds are essential to the wellbeing of our communities and ecosystems. As our climate continues to change, understanding how watersheds function and remain healthy is more important than ever. The CVRD is committed to watershed protection, and is taking action through the Drinking Water and Watershed Protection Program.

Watersheds in the Cowichan Valley

There are 18 watershed groupings in the CVRD that provide valuable goods and services like drinking water, climate regulation, and fish and wildlife habitat. Fifteen of these watersheds flow to the more developed east coast of Vancouver Island while the other three flow to west coast.

Every Cowichan Valley resident lives in a watershed! To learn more about our watersheds and find which one you live in, visit the Watershed Atlas. Once you've found your watershed, click the corresponding link below to learn more!

To learn more about watersheds and the groups that support them, see these additional resources:

Water quality in your watershed:

Use the provincial Surface Water Quality Monitoring Sites Interactive Map to find water quality data in your watershed.