Cowichan Watershed Board

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • YouTube
MENUMENU
  • About
    • Collaborative Governance
    • Our Principles
    • Board Members
    • Staff Team
    • Non-Profit Society
    • Supporters (Coming Soon)
    • Contact Us
  • Targets
    • Water Quality
    • Estuary Health
    • Salmon Sustainability
    • Wise Water Use
    • Watershed Connections
    • Water Flows
    • Riparian Plants
    • Target Working Groups
  • Projects
    • Drought Response
    • River Cleanup
    • Koksilah
    • Twinned Watersheds Project
      • Riparian Plants
      • Indigenous Flows
      • Fish Habitats
      • Big Dancing Fish
    • Weir Ready
      • Weir Ready FAQ
    • Speakers Series
    • Past Projects (Coming Soon)
      • Water Challenge (Coming Soon)
      • Superheroes (Coming Soon)
  • Library
    • Board Meetings
    • Governance Documents
    • Maps
    • Media
    • Presentations
    • Videos
    • Reports
      • CWB Reports
      • Other Reports
    • All Library Items
  • Latest News
You are here: Home / River clean up will celebrate World Rivers Day in Cowichan

River clean up will celebrate World Rivers Day in Cowichan

Rodger Hunter, Cowichan Valley Citizen, September 24, 2010

In 2005 the United Nations declared 2005 to 2015 to be the Water for Life Decade.

Among other things, the Water for Life initiative is intended to encourage better stewardship of the world’s water resources. As part of that initiative the UN designated the fourth Sunday in September as World Rivers Day.

A special thing about World Rivers Day is that it is rooted in B.C. It began in September 1980 when BCIT’s Mark Angelo and 40 others spent the day cleaning up the Thompson River. That evening at a hotel in Lytton, they committed to continuing their efforts the next year. By 1993 there were Rivers Day events throughout B.C. and the fourth Sunday of September was officially designated BC Rivers day.

Interestingly, in 1992 the federal government had designated the second Sunday in June as Canadian Rivers Day to align with Environment Day which occurs earlier in the month. In 2003 Angelo and a network of river enthusiasts began lobbying the UN to declare the fourth Sunday in September to be World Rivers Day. The rest is history. For the past year Angelo has been Chair of the Rivers Institute at BCIT. He is also the World Rivers Day Chair.

The year 1993 was also important for B.C.’s rivers because the province established a blue ribbon committee including, among others, Mark Angelo and the Honourable David Anderson (now a member of the Cowichan Watershed Board) to explore whether B.C. should join the Canadian Heritage River System.

The committee noted that B.C.’s rivers were undervalued and called for action.

As a result the province designated the Adams, Babine, Blackwater, Cowichan, Fraser, Skagit and Stikine as B.C.’s inaugural heritage rivers. A decade later, in 2005, the Cowichan was designated as a Canadian Heritage River joining the Fraser and Kickinghorse as B.C. rivers with national heritage status. A plaque commemorating the Cowichan’s Canadian Heritage River status is located near the river at the Quw’utsun’ Cultural Centre.

As a heritage river it was envisioned that the Cowichan would be "A model of watershed cooperation among a wide variety of stakeholders…". Cowichan watershed exemplifies that vision.

It is considered to be the provincial leader in cooperative watershed management because of the strong relationships and commitment to stewardship that exists here. The Cowichan Watershed Board, Cowichan Lake and River Stewardship Committee, Somenos Marsh Wildlife Society, the Quamichan Stewards and the Community Land Trust represent a handful of the numerous positive forces working for healthy, prosperous watersheds.

Our watershed is large. There is much to care about and care for. This month the focus is on river clean up. Gerald Thom and the Cowichan Lake stewardship group recently lead a successful clean up day from the lake down to Skutz Falls. This Sunday, on World Rivers Day, Don Barrie ([email protected]) is leading a clean up between Skutz Falls and Marie Canyon. Shore support workers are needed. Interested volunteers should meet at Riverbottom Road and Mayo at 10 a.m. Please bring gloves and good foot wear. The clean up will be followed by a barbecue and prizes at the Warm Rapids Inn.

Please don’t wait until Canadian Rivers Day in June to celebrate our watershed again. A healthy watershed is vital to our health. Embrace each day as Rivers Day.

© Cowichan Valley Citizen 2010

Source

Weir Project Website

screenshot cowichanlakeweir.ca

Click to visit the weir project website.

Fish Kill Report

cover - fish kill report

Click to read. This report details the lessons and response to the massive 2023 fish kill in Cowichan River.

Watershed Board Meeting Info – click image.

CoChairs Daniels and Segall

Click image for Board Meeting Packages. Photo of CWB Co-Chairs, Cowichan Tribes Chief Cindy Daniels, CVRD Chair Kate Segall (Cowichan Tribes photo)

Why Fish Need Water

Why Fish Need Trees

Why Fish Need People

Latest News

  • [Chek News] ‘It’s dropped so fast’: Low snowpack impacts Cowichan River
  • [Times Colonist] Comment: Let’s give a dam for Vancouver Island’s only heritage river
  • [The Discourse] Local advocates look ahead to a healthier year for Somenos Lake
  • Why BC Needs Watershed Boards

Sign up for E-News!

Board Meeting Notifications

Event Notifications

CWB Website

Home
About Us
Contact
Board Meetings
Annual Reports
Library
Privacy
Terms

Targets

CWB Targets

Water Quality
Estuarine Health
Salmon Sustainability
Water Use
Watershed Connections
Water Supply
Riparian Area Protection

Cowichan Watershed

Cowichan Lake
Quamichan & Somenos Lakes
Cowichan Estuary
The Weir
Koksilah

Logo Email

[email protected]

Mailing Address
4335 Riverside Road
Duncan, BC, V9L 6M8

Copyright © 2025 Cowichan Watershed Board - All Rights Reserved. | Design by MAC5 | Site Maintenance by Web321

cowichan tribes logo cvrd logo polis logo refbc logo pacific salmon logo

The Cowichan Watershed Board (CWB) gratefully acknowledges the financial support of the above organizations.