[5] Beginning in the 1870s a small number of Asian immigrants, particularly Japanese, also decided to settle the area for its abundance of fish stock and timber.

These Japanese immigrants, primarily from Wakayama Prefecture, brought with them methods of charcoal production, whose evidence can still be found on the island today.

Following confederation of British Columbia into Canada in 1871 and the subsequent the completion of the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1885, the nearby Lower Mainland exploded in population.

[10] Many environmentally conscious residents objected to the widespread logging, leading to many disputes including MacMillan Bloedel Ltd. v. Galiano Island Trust Committee in 1995.

One of the more dangerous passes in the Gulf Islands, currents can reach up to 10 knots at maximum flood, and many whirlpools and overfalls are known to form.

Galiano Island experiences an annual moisture deficit from mid-June to early October due to the combined effects of seasonal dry, sunny and warm weather.

This deficit can often reach drought conditions in areas of recent clearcuts and can result in an extreme forest fire hazard in the summer months.

[16] Due to its mild climate and position in a confluence between two different tidal systems, Galiano Island is home to a large variety of fauna and flora, which have been heavily sampled by science.

In a 2022 article published as the first volume in a 5-part overview of the island's biodiversity, researchers reported "over 4000 taxa recorded to date, including avian, freshwater, marine and terrestrial species".

Of the 19 reef complexes mapped throughout the Salish Sea, the waters off Galiano Island are home to one of the most extensive ones, with large populations of cloud sponges and Heterochone calyx being recorded, as well as a high diversity of marine animal species.

While most of the island has been logged in the years since European settlement, limited old-growth forests still exist, for example on the southern side of Bluffs Park.

[19] Galiano Island is accessible by vehicle via the BC Ferries terminal at Sturdies Bay, located on Active Pass.

In the summer, a foot passenger ferry service called Aqualink, takes people from Galiano's Sturdies Bay (beside the Village) dock to Saltspring island for the Saturday Market in Ganges.

Daily, regularly scheduled floatplane service is offered from the Vancouver International Water Airport through Seair Seaplanes to Montague Harbour.