Water levels in Cowichan Lake are currently lower than they were this time in 2023, considered the worst drought year in the watershed in recent memory.
But Brian Houle, environment manager at the Catalyst Crofton mill which owns and operates the weir at Lake Cowichan, said that while the water level in the lake as of May 26, which is 75 per cent full, is lower than in 2023, the surrounding mountains still have some snow pack to melt this year and that will help raise the lake level.
“In 2023, the snow pack was not there to help, and the river flow was held at 15 cms at that time and drawing the lake levels down quickly,” he said.
“River flow in 2025 is seven cms, not 15 cms as it was in 2023, and that will help us maximize the water levels in the lake in the coming weeks. The upcoming three weeks as the snow pack fully melts will help define conditions for the 2025 dry season.”
Houle also said the cloudy weather with the occasional rainfall has been helping conditions in the watershed in recent weeks, and the weather forecast currently still includes predictions of rain.
The severe drought that struck the region in the summer of 2023 lowered water levels in Cowichan Lake and the Cowichan River dramatically, and resulted in the deaths of approximately 84,000 fish in the river.
Catalyst had to use 20 pumps for more than a month in September and October of that year to pump water over the weir to sustain water levels in the river.
That led to a new approach to managing water inventory in Cowichan Lake, and both provincial and federal fisheries are now aligned on what actions are needed as the dry season of 2025 approaches.
Maintenance of water levels in the lake and river were deemed a success during the 2024 dry season, when the lake level supported seven cms. flows out of the lake all summer, with no evident fish kills in the Cowichan River and no need for pumps in the fall.
