The provincial government has put much of the BC Coast, Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands, and Haida Gwaii under a level 3 drought rating.
The rating calls for voluntary reduction of water use to help critically low fish-bearing streams and creeks rebound.
The Koksilah, Chemainus, San Juan and Salmon Rivers are among the rivers identified as approaching critical flow thresholds.
Valerie Cameron, Water Stewardship Manager for the Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations says voluntary reductions have worked before:
"This exact same thing happened last year. The Koksilah River was very low last year. The agricultural community rallied and voluntarily conserved water and we saw the stream levels rebound immediately.
But Cameron says if voluntary reductions don't address the situation, further actions will be considered -- including the temporary suspension of water licenses.
" It's not a route that we want to do. We don't like to bring the heavy hand of government down when we don't need to. Our goal is to urge voluntary water conservation because it can be very successful in helping to maintain flows and streams."
When the water level is low fish face increased threat of disease, stranding, increased water temperature and reduced oxygenation.
Some things you can do to save water include taking shorter showers, turning the tap off while brushing teeth, limiting outdoor watering, installing low-flow shower heads and toilets.