Letter: Directors fail to provide necessary leadership

We need leaders who are willing to act on the best available science

Letter: Directors fail to provide necessary leadership Published 2:22 pm Wednesday, July 15, 2026 As the climate rapidly destabilizes, wildfires, extreme heat, drought, and flooding are becoming more serious risks for the Cowichan region. These issues were front and centre at the July 8th CVRD Committee of the Whole meeting during a presentation and discussion on the region’s newly updated climate projections, prepared by the Pacific Climate Impacts Consortium — a respected climate research centre at the University of Victoria.

If you live in North Cowichan, I urge you to take the time to watch the recording for this item (Item 8.1). It is very instructive about how our North Cowichan directors represent our interests regionally on such matters and, perhaps more importantly, how they rationalize their decision-making. The staff recommended that the board endorse the projections as a baseline for long-term climate adaptation planning and regional resilience.

Remarkably, when the question was called three of the four North Cowichan directors — Manhas, Caljouw, and Findlay — voted against. Reasons cited for their opposition included climate change is a natural process, concerns about the projections’ reliance on UN sources, and uncertainty that comes with climate models. At a time when our community is facing increasingly serious climate-related risks we need leaders who are willing to act on the best available science, and who prioritize community resilience.

In my view, this voting bloc is failing to provide the leadership needed for the challenges facing our community now and, in the future. Karen Jarvis North Cowichan