The Cowichan Valley Regional District is a

regional district In the province of British Columbia in Canada, a regional district is an administrative subdivision of the province that consists of a geographic region with specific boundaries and governmental authority. there were 28 regional districts in t ...

in the

Canadian province Within the geographical areas of Canada, the ten provinces and three territories are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British North ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

is on the southern part of

Vancouver Island Vancouver Island is an island in the northeastern Pacific Ocean and part of the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of British Columbia. The island is in length, in width at its widest point, and in total area, while are o ...

, bordered by the

Nanaimo Nanaimo ( ) is a city on the east coast of Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada. As of the Canada 2021 Census, 2021 census, it had a population of 99,863, and it is known as "The Harbour City." The city was previously known as the "H ...

and Alberni-Clayoquot Regional Districts to the north and northwest, and by the

Capital Regional District The Capital Regional District (CRD) is a local government administrative district encompassing the southern tip of Vancouver Island and the southern Gulf Islands in the Canadian province of British Columbia. The CRD is one of several regional d ...

to the south and east. As of the 2021 Census, the Regional District had a population of 89,013. The regional district offices are in Duncan.

Geography

The Cowichan Valley Regional District covers an area between the

Stuart Channel Stuart Channel is a strait in the Gulf Islands region of the Gulf of Georgia, separating Vancouver Island on the west from Thetis, DeCourcy and Penelakut (Kuper) Islands on the east. Ladysmith Harbour and the town of Chemainus face onto it from ...

and

Saanich Inlet , image = Saanich Inlet from Gowlland Tod Provincial Park, Vancouver Island, Canada 13.jpg , image_size = 260px , caption = Saanich Inlet from Gowlland Tod Provincial Park , image_bathymetry = , caption_bathymetry = , location = Northwest o ...

on the east coast of Vancouver Island and the southern part of the

West Coast Trail The West Coast Trail, originally called the Dominion Lifesaving Trail, is a backpacking trail following the southwestern edge of Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. It was built in 1907 to facilitate the rescue of shipwrecked survivors ...

, with

Cowichan Lake Cowichan Lake is a large freshwater lake located on southern Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. It is located along the Cowichan Valley in the Cowichan Valley Regional District, with its eastern shore about west of Duncan, British Colum ...

and

Cowichan Valley The Cowichan Valley is a region around the Cowichan River, Cowichan Bay and Cowichan Lake on Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada. There is some debate as to the origin of the name Cowichan, which many believe to be an anglicized form ...

proper located in its central region. It includes the

Gulf Islands The Gulf Islands are a group of islands in the Salish Sea between Vancouver Island and the mainland coast of British Columbia. Etymology The name "Gulf Islands" comes from "Gulf of Georgia," the original term used by George Vancouver in his ma ...

Thetis Thetis (; grc-gre, Θέτις ), is a figure from Greek mythology with varying mythological roles. She mainly appears as a sea nymph, a goddess of water, or one of the 50 Nereids, daughters of the ancient sea god Nereus. When described as ...

, Kuper and Valdes. The total land area is 3,473.12 km² (1,340.98 sq mi).

Demographics

As a

census division Census divisions, in Canada and the United States of America, United States, are areas delineated for the purposes of statistical analysis and presentation; they have no government in and of themselves. The census divisions of Canada are second-lev ...

in the 2021 Census of Population conducted by

Statistics Canada Statistics Canada (StatCan; french: Statistique Canada), formed in 1971, is the agency of the Government of Canada commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and cultur ...

, the Cowichan Valley Regional District had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.

Communities

Incorporated communities

* City of Duncan - Pop 5,047 * Town of Ladysmith - Pop 8,990 * Town of Lake Cowichan - Pop 3,325 * District Municipality of North Cowichan - Pop 31,990

Indigenous Reserves

* Chemainus 13 * Claoose 4 * Cowichan 1 * Cowichan 9 *

* Est-Patrolas 4 * Halalt 2 * Kil-pah-las 3 * Kuper Island 7 * Lyacksun 3 * Malachan 11 * Malahat 11 * Oyster Bay 12 * Portier Pass 5 * Shingle Point 4 * Squaw-hay-one 11 * Theik 2 * Tsussie 6 * Wyah 3

Electoral areas

A

* Malahat * Mill Bay

B

* Shawnigan Lake

C

Arbutus Ridge Arbutus Ridge is an affluent residential neighbourhood in Vancouver's West Side. It is bordered by 16th Avenue in the north, 41st Avenue in the south, Mackenzie Street in the west, and East Boulevard in the east. The neighbourhood is characterize ...

* Cobble Hill * Cherry Point

D

Cowichan Bay Cowichan Bay () is a bay and community located on the east coast of southern Vancouver Island near Duncan, in British Columbia. The mouth of the Cowichan River is near Cowichan Bay. Mount Tzouhalem and its hiking trails and ecological reserve sta ...

H

Diamond Diamond is a Allotropes of carbon, solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Another solid form of carbon known as graphite is the Chemical stability, chemically stable form of car ...

* North Oyster * Yellow Point