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'''Environmental racism in Nova Scotia''' are the environmental injustices in the province that have an unequal effect on ].
⚫ ​​] is a term used in the ] to describe environmental injustices that disproportionately affect ].<ref>Ryan Holifield, "Defining environmental justice and environmental racism," ''Urban geography'' 22, no. 1 (2001): 78-90. DOI: 10.2747/0272-3638.22.1.78.</ref> For many decades, environmental activists have drawn attention to various examples of environmental racism in the ] province of ], especially those injustices faced by ] and ] communities. A frequent example of environmental racism in Nova Scotia is the disproportionate siting of toxic facilities such as landfills, thermal generating stations, and paper mills in marginalized communities.<ref>Julia Stoughton, “A Framing Analysis of News Discourse in the Case of Environmental Racism in Lincolnville, Nova Scotia,” PhD. diss., Dalhousie University, 2017.</ref> Accordingly, a 2002 study found that over 30% of ] live within a five-kilometre radius of a landfill.<ref>Karen D. Hudson, “A Question of Environmental Racism in the Preston Area, Nova Scotia.” PhD. diss, National Library of Canada = Bibliothèque nationale du Canada, 2003.</ref> Environmental racism in Nova Scotia is a source of multigenerational trauma—there is scientific evidence linking the presence of toxic facilities to water insecurity, higher rates of various illnesses (especially cancers), and other harms to physical and mental health and wellbeing.<ref>Native Youth Sexual Health Network and Women’s Earth Alliance, ''Violence on the Land is Violence on Our Bodies'', 2016, Introduction, Chapter 1 & 2, p 1-35.</ref>

⚫ ==Notable Cases==
⚫ ​​] is a term used in the ] movement to describe environmental injustices that disproportionately affect racialized communities.{{sfn|Holifield|2001|78-90}} For many decades, environmental activists have drawn attention to various examples of environmental racism in the Canadian province of ], especially those injustices faced by ] and ] communities. A frequent example of environmental racism in Nova Scotia is the disproportionate siting of toxic facilities such as landfills, thermal generating stations, and paper mills in marginalized communities.{{sfn|Stoughton|2017}} Accordingly, a 2002 study found that over 30% of ] live within a {{cvt|5|km}} radius of a landfill.{{sfn|Hudson|2003}} Environmental racism in Nova Scotia is a source of multigenerational trauma—there is scientific evidence linking the presence of toxic facilities to water insecurity, higher rates of various illnesses (especially cancers), and other harms to physical and mental health and wellbeing.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://www.niwrc.org/sites/default/files/files/reports/Violence%20on%20the%20Land%20Violence%20on%20Our%20Bodies.pdf |publisher=] and ]|title=Violence on the Land, Violence on Our Bodies|date=2016|chapter=Introduction, 1 & 2|pages=1-35}}</ref>

⚫ ==Notable cases==
This is not an exhaustive list of cases of environmental racism in Nova Scotia. This is not an exhaustive list of cases of environmental racism in Nova Scotia.

===Africville=== ===Africville===

], a predominantly Black community founded in the 1800s, is the most historic example of environmental racism in Nova Scotia. Even though residents paid taxes, the City of Halifax discriminated against the community by refusing to provide basic amenities including sewage, waste disposal, and clean water. An infectious disease hospital and landfill were built near Africville, increasing residents’ exposure to environmental harms. After multiple requests for municipal services, the City relocated and razed the community without thorough consultation. The relocation was poorly coordinated and left many residents without adequate housing or support structures. The City of Halifax apologized for the razing of the community in 2010.<ref>Matthew McRae, “The Story of Africville,” ''Canadian Museum for Human Rights'', February 23, 2017, https://humanrights.ca/story/the-story-of-africville.</ref> ], a predominantly Black community founded in the 1800s, is the most historic example of environmental racism in Nova Scotia. Even though residents paid taxes, the ] discriminated against the community by refusing to provide basic amenities including sewage, waste disposal, and clean water. An infectious disease hospital and landfill were built near Africville, increasing residents' exposure to environmental harms. After multiple requests for municipal services, the City relocated and razed the community without thorough consultation. The relocation was poorly coordinated and left many residents without adequate housing or support structures. The City of Halifax apologized for the razing of the community in 2010.{{sfn|McRae|2017}}

===Boat Harbour=== ===Boat Harbour===
For over 50 years, industrial wastewater ] from a pulp mill in ] was released into an estuary that is culturally significant for the ]. The community also hunted and fished on this land in order to survive. The effluent resulted in the decline of fish populations, air pollution, and contaminated drinking water.<ref>Lyndsay Eichinger and Tony R. Walker, "Review of remedial options for the Boat Harbour remediation project in Nova Scotia, Canada," ''Remediation Journal'' 31, no. 1 (2020): 91-104.</ref> For over 50 years, industrial wastewater ] from a pulp mill in ] was released into an estuary that is culturally significant for the ]. The community also hunted and fished on this land in order to survive. The effluent resulted in the decline of fish populations, air pollution, and contaminated drinking water.{{sfn|Eichinger|Walker|2020|p=91-104}}

===Lincolnville=== ===Lincolnville===
Residents in the primarily African Canadian town of ] protested the 2006 opening of a second-generation landfill, part of the Nova Scotian government’s budgetary plan to amalgamate landfill sites.<ref>Leith Deacon and Jamie Baxter, “No Opportunity to Say No: a Case Study of Procedural Environmental Injustice in Canada,” ''Journal of Environmental Planning and Management'' 56, no. 5 (2013): 611–612, https://doi.org/10.1080/09640568.2012.692502.</ref> The site previously hosted a first-generation landfill for over 30 years, which had also been a source of frustration for the community as it lacked the necessary liners to prevent toxic runoff. Residents cite the indifference of the local government, a lack of employment opportunities, and allegedly high rates of cancer in the town as examples of environmental racism against the Lincolnville community.<ref>Hillary Bain Lindsay, “Race and Waste in Nova Scotia,” ''The Dominion'', December 7, 2006, http://www.dominionpaper.ca/environment/2006/12/07/race_and_w.html</ref> A local community group opposed to the new landfill was often ignored or denied the opportunity to share their concerns with city councillors after the landfill became operational.<ref>Deacon and Baxter, “No Opportunity to Say No,” 613.</ref> Residents in the primarily African Canadian town of ] protested the 2006 opening of a second-generation landfill, part of the Nova Scotian government's budgetary plan to amalgamate landfill sites.{{sfn|Deacon|Baxter|2012|p=611-612}} The site previously hosted a first-generation landfill for over 30 years, which had also been a source of frustration for the community as it lacked the necessary liners to prevent toxic runoff. Residents cite the indifference of the local government, a lack of employment opportunities, and allegedly high rates of cancer in the town as examples of environmental racism against the Lincolnville community.{{sfn|Lindsay|2006}} A local community group opposed to the new landfill was often ignored or denied the opportunity to share their concerns with city councillors after the landfill became operational{{sfn|Deacon|Baxter|2012|p=613}}

===Shelburne=== ===Shelburne===
In ], African Nova Scotian residents are concentrated near a landfill that was used for industrial, medical, and residential waste for over seventy-five years.<ref>Louise Delisle and Ellen Sweeney, "Community Mobilization to Address Environmental Racism," ''Kalfou'' 5, no. 2 (Fall, 2018): 313, doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.15367/kf.v5i2.216.</ref> Although the landfill has been closed for nearly thirty years, toxic waste has gradually leaked into the community's primary water sources over time. Additionally, the site was used as a transfer station for oil barrels and other industrial waste up until 2016.<ref>Delisle and Sweeney, "Community Mobilization," 313.</ref> This environmental hazard has resulted in long-lasting damage to the physical and mental health of the Black community in Shelburne. In ], African Nova Scotian residents are concentrated near a landfill that was used for industrial, medical, and residential waste for over seventy-five years.{{sfn|Delisle|Sweeney|2018|p=313}} Although the landfill has been closed for nearly thirty years, toxic waste has gradually leaked into the community's primary water sources over time. Additionally, the site was used as a transfer station for oil barrels and other industrial waste up until 2016.{{sfn|Delisle|Sweeney|2018|p=313}} This environmental hazard has resulted in long-lasting damage to the physical and mental health of the Black community in Shelburne.

===Stewiacke=== ===Stewiacke===
In ], the Alton Gas Storage Project was first proposed in 2007. It aimed to use water from the Shubenacadie River to flush out salt deposits in order to store natural gas. The placement of the natural gas deposits would violate Indigenous ] as the river is the center of ] territory and culture. Further, the project would have posed significant environmental risks by restricting access to clean water and culling wildlife populations.<ref>Waldron, Ingrid. "Re-thinking waste: mapping racial geographies of violence on the colonial landscape." ''Environmental Sociology'' 4.1 (2018): 36-53.</ref> The project was cancelled in October 2021 after years of protest led by grassroots Indigenous movements and environmental activists.<ref>https://altonnaturalgasstorage.ca/news/alton-natural-gas-storage-project-update/</ref> The ] at ], first proposed in 2007, aimed to use water from the ] to flush out salt deposits in order to store natural gas. The placement of the natural gas deposits would violate Indigenous ] as the river is the center of ] territory and culture. Further, the project would have posed significant environmental risks by restricting access to clean water and culling wildlife populations.{{sfn|Waldron|2018|p=36-53}} The project was cancelled in October 2021 after years of protest led by grassroots Indigenous movements and environmental activists.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://altonnaturalgasstorage.ca/news/alton-natural-gas-storage-project-update/ |title=Alton Natural Gas Storage Project|date=October 22, 2021}}</ref>


==Responses== ==Responses==
===Ingrid Waldron=== ===Ingrid Waldron===
Canadian sociologist ] researches the impact of environmental racism on the physical and mental health and social wellbeing of Black and Mi’kmaq communities. This includes her work through the ENRICH Project (see section below) as well as her 2018 book and its ]. Waldron also worked with former Nova Scotian MP ] to attempt to introduce ] combating environmental racism.<ref>https://nslegislature.ca/legc/bills/63rd_1st/1st_read/b032.htm</ref> Canadian sociologist ] researches the impact of environmental racism on the physical and mental health and social wellbeing of Black and Mi'kmaq communities. This includes her work through the ENRICH Project (see section below) as well as her 2018 book ''There's Something In The Water''<ref>{{cite web|url=https://fernwoodpublishing.ca/book/there8217s-something-in-the-water |title=There's Something In The Water|access-date=July 11, 2023}}</ref> and its ]. Waldron also worked with former Nova Scotian MP ] to attempt to introduce a ] combating environmental racism.

===ENRICH Project=== ===ENRICH Project===
] founded the in 2012 to examine environmental injustices in marginalized racial communities across Canada. The ENRICH Project’s work includes advising local and federal governments, developing legislation, formulating curriculum and educational workshops, and conducting policy-relevant research to gain traction both within affected communities and on a larger, national and global scale.<ref>https://www.enrichproject.org/about/background/</ref> ] founded the Environmental Noxiousness, Racial Inequalities & Community Health Project (ENRICH) in 2012 to examine environmental injustices in marginalized racial communities across Canada. The ENRICH Project's work includes advising local and federal governments, developing legislation, formulating curriculum and educational workshops, and conducting policy-relevant research to gain traction both within affected communities and on a larger, national and global scale.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.enrichproject.org/about/background/ |title=The ENRICH Project - Background|access-date=July 11, 2023}}</ref>


==Further Reading== ==Further reading==
Bernard, Dorene. “Reconciliation and Environmental Racism in Mi’kma’ki.” ''Kalfou'' 5, no. 2 (2018): 297–. . *{{cite journal|first=Bernard|last=Dorene|title=Reconciliation and Environmental Racism in Mi'kma'ki|journal=]|volume=5|issue=2|date=2018|p=297|doi=10.15367/kf.v5i2.214}}​
⚫ *{{cite book|last1=Gosine|first1=Andil|last2=Teelucksingh|first2=Cheryl|title=Environmental Justice and Racism in Canada: An Introduction|location=Toronto|publisher=Edmond Montgomery Publications|date=2008}}


==Notes==
⚫ Delisle, Louise, and Ellen Sweeney. “Community Mobilization to Address Environmental Racism: The South End Environmental Injustice Society.” ''Kalfou'' 5, no. 2 (2018). .
​
⚫ Gosine, Andil and Teelucksingh, Cheryl. ''Environmental Justice and Racism in Canada: An Introduction''. Toronto: Edmond Montgomery Publications, 2008.

Native Youth Sexual Health Network and Women’s Earth Alliance. ''Violence on the Land is Violence on Our Bodies''. 2016. .

Waldron, Ingrid. “Re-Thinking Waste: Mapping Racial Geographies of Violence on the Colonial Landscape.” ''Environmental Sociology'' 4, no. 1 (2018): 36–53. .

==See Also==
]

]

]

==Bibliography==
{{reflist}} {{reflist}}


==References==

*{{cite journal|first=Ryan|last=Holifield|title=Defining environmental justice and environmental racism|journal=]|volume=22|issue=1|date=2001|doi=10.2747/0272-3638.22.1.78}}
*{{cite book|first=Julia|last=Stoughton|title=A Framing Analysis of News Discourse in the Case of Environmental Racism in Lincolnville, Nova Scotia|work=PhD. dissertation|publisher=]|date=2017}}
*{{cite book|first=Karen D.|last=Hudson|title=A Question of Environmental Racism in the Preston Area, Nova Scotia.|work=PhD. dissertation|publisher=] = Bibliothèque nationale du Canada|date=2003}}
*{{cite web|first=Matthew|last=McRae|title=The Story of Africville|publisher=]|date=February 23, 2017|url=https://humanrights.ca/story/the-story-of-africville}}
*{{cite journal|first1=Lyndsay|last1=Eichinger|first2=Tony R.|last2=Walker|title=Review of remedial options for the Boat Harbour remediation project in Nova Scotia, Canada|journal=Remediation Journal|volume=31|issue=1|date=2020|pages=91-104}}
*{{cite journal|first1=Leith|last1=Deacon|first2=Jamie|last2=Baxter|title=No Opportunity to Say No: a Case Study of Procedural Environmental Injustice in Canada|journal=Journal of Environmental Planning and Management|volume=56|issue=5|date=2012|doi=10.1080/09640568.2012.692502}}
*{{cite web|first=Hillary Bain|last=Lindsay|title=Race and Waste in Nova Scotia|publisher=]|date=December 7, 2006|url=http://www.dominionpaper.ca/environment/2006/12/07/race_and_w.html}}
⚫ *{{cite journal|first1=Louise|last1=Delisle|first2=Ellen|last2=Sweeney|title=Community Mobilization to Address Environmental Racism: The South End Environmental Injustice Society|journal=]|volume=5|issue=2 (Fall)|date=2018|doi=10.15367/kf.v5i2.216}}
*{{cite journal|first=Waldron|last=Ingrid|author-link=Ingrid Waldron|title=Re-thinking waste: mapping racial geographies of violence on the colonial landscape|journal=]|volume=4|isssue=1|date=2018}}


] ]

Revision as of 23:51, 11 July 2023

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Environmental racism in Nova Scotia are the environmental injustices in the province that have an unequal effect on racial minorities.

​​Environmental racism is a term used in the environmental justice movement to describe environmental injustices that disproportionately affect racialized communities. For many decades, environmental activists have drawn attention to various examples of environmental racism in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, especially those injustices faced by Black and Indigenous communities. A frequent example of environmental racism in Nova Scotia is the disproportionate siting of toxic facilities such as landfills, thermal generating stations, and paper mills in marginalized communities. Accordingly, a 2002 study found that over 30% of Black residents in Nova Scotia live within a 5 km (3.1 mi) radius of a landfill. Environmental racism in Nova Scotia is a source of multigenerational trauma—there is scientific evidence linking the presence of toxic facilities to water insecurity, higher rates of various illnesses (especially cancers), and other harms to physical and mental health and wellbeing.

Notable cases

This is not an exhaustive list of cases of environmental racism in Nova Scotia.

Africville

Africville, a predominantly Black community founded in the 1800s, is the most historic example of environmental racism in Nova Scotia. Even though residents paid taxes, the City of Halifax discriminated against the community by refusing to provide basic amenities including sewage, waste disposal, and clean water. An infectious disease hospital and landfill were built near Africville, increasing residents' exposure to environmental harms. After multiple requests for municipal services, the City relocated and razed the community without thorough consultation. The relocation was poorly coordinated and left many residents without adequate housing or support structures. The City of Halifax apologized for the razing of the community in 2010.

Boat Harbour

For over 50 years, industrial wastewater effluent from a pulp mill in Boat Harbour was released into an estuary that is culturally significant for the Pictou Landing First Nation. The community also hunted and fished on this land in order to survive. The effluent resulted in the decline of fish populations, air pollution, and contaminated drinking water.

Lincolnville

Residents in the primarily African Canadian town of Lincolnville protested the 2006 opening of a second-generation landfill, part of the Nova Scotian government's budgetary plan to amalgamate landfill sites. The site previously hosted a first-generation landfill for over 30 years, which had also been a source of frustration for the community as it lacked the necessary liners to prevent toxic runoff. Residents cite the indifference of the local government, a lack of employment opportunities, and allegedly high rates of cancer in the town as examples of environmental racism against the Lincolnville community. A local community group opposed to the new landfill was often ignored or denied the opportunity to share their concerns with city councillors after the landfill became operational

Shelburne

In Shelburne, African Nova Scotian residents are concentrated near a landfill that was used for industrial, medical, and residential waste for over seventy-five years. Although the landfill has been closed for nearly thirty years, toxic waste has gradually leaked into the community's primary water sources over time. Additionally, the site was used as a transfer station for oil barrels and other industrial waste up until 2016. This environmental hazard has resulted in long-lasting damage to the physical and mental health of the Black community in Shelburne.

Stewiacke

The Alton Gas Storage Project at Stewiacke, first proposed in 2007, aimed to use water from the Shubenacadie River to flush out salt deposits in order to store natural gas. The placement of the natural gas deposits would violate Indigenous treaty rights as the river is the center of Mi'kmaq territory and culture. Further, the project would have posed significant environmental risks by restricting access to clean water and culling wildlife populations. The project was cancelled in October 2021 after years of protest led by grassroots Indigenous movements and environmental activists.

Responses

Ingrid Waldron

Canadian sociologist Ingrid Waldron researches the impact of environmental racism on the physical and mental health and social wellbeing of Black and Mi'kmaq communities. This includes her work through the ENRICH Project (see section below) as well as her 2018 book There's Something In The Water and its accompanying film. Waldron also worked with former Nova Scotian MP Lenore Zann to attempt to introduce a National Strategy to Redress Environmental Racism Act combating environmental racism.

ENRICH Project

Ingrid Waldron founded the Environmental Noxiousness, Racial Inequalities & Community Health Project (ENRICH) in 2012 to examine environmental injustices in marginalized racial communities across Canada. The ENRICH Project's work includes advising local and federal governments, developing legislation, formulating curriculum and educational workshops, and conducting policy-relevant research to gain traction both within affected communities and on a larger, national and global scale.

Further reading

  • Dorene, Bernard (2018). "Reconciliation and Environmental Racism in Mi'kma'ki". Kalfou. 5 (2): 297. doi:10.15367/kf.v5i2.214.​
  • Gosine, Andil; Teelucksingh, Cheryl (2008). Environmental Justice and Racism in Canada: An Introduction. Toronto: Edmond Montgomery Publications.

Notes

  1. Holifield, 2001 & 78-90. sfn error: no target: CITEREFHolifield200178-90 (help)
  2. Stoughton 2017.
  3. Hudson 2003.
  4. "Introduction, 1 & 2". Violence on the Land, Violence on Our Bodies (PDF). Native Youth Sexual Health Network and Women's Earth Alliance. 2016. pp. 1–35.
  5. McRae 2017.
  6. Eichinger & Walker 2020, p. 91-104.
  7. Deacon & Baxter 2012, p. 611-612.
  8. Lindsay 2006.
  9. Deacon & Baxter 2012, p. 613.
  10. ^ Delisle & Sweeney 2018, p. 313.
  11. Waldron 2018, p. 36-53. sfn error: no target: CITEREFWaldron2018 (help)
  12. "Alton Natural Gas Storage Project". October 22, 2021.
  13. "There's Something In The Water". Retrieved July 11, 2023.
  14. "The ENRICH Project - Background". Retrieved July 11, 2023.

References

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