Description
The ENRICH Project is a collaborative community-based project investigating the cause and effects of toxic industries situated near Mi’kmaq and African Nova Scotian communities.
The focus of this web app is to bring awareness to the environmental racism that has impacted Indigenous and Black communities in Canada. Indigenous and African communities and toxic facilities were mapped in Nova Scotia to show the significant amount of these communities that are in close proximity to toxic industry. Several resources are also provided through the web app for those interested in learning more about this important issue including articles, podcasts, documentaries, and videos.
Social Media links for The ENRICH Project are available through the web app to keep up to date with the current projects and activities that the ENRICH Project has been engaged in.
https://www.arcgis.com/apps/mapviewer/index.html?webmap=2856af4a130044fab23355dd72961fd9
ENRICH Mapping – Methodology and Data Sources
This document outlines the methodology and data sources used in the creation of the ENRICH Map, which visualizes the proximity of toxic facilities to First Nations and African Nova Scotian communities in Nova Scotia.
- Data Used
- First Nations and African Nova Scotian Community Locations
- Toxic Facilities
- Census Data
- Community Boundary Data
- First Nations and African Nova Scotian Community Locations
This layer shows point locations of two types of communities: First Nations and African Nova Scotian Communities. First Nations is sourced from Aboriginal People Community info, Province of Nova Scotia (2021). Information includes the band office location, population, Chief and Tribal Council. African Nova Scotian Communities locations are placed according to the African Nova Scotian Communities Map sourced from Canadian Museum of History (2022).
- Toxic Facilities
The toxic facilities information is sourced from Department of Environment and Climate Change (Province of Nova Scotia, 2025). Seven types of facilities are considered for the ENRICH Map:
| Asbestos Waste Disposal Facilities | Last Updated: 20 December 2023Data Retrieved From: https://novascotia.ca/nse/waste/asbestos-waste-disposal-facilities.asp |
| Construction and Demolition Debris Disposal Sites (C&D) | Data Access Date: 13 March 2025Data Retrieved From: https://novascotia.ca/nse/waste.facilities/facilities.construction.demolition.asp |
| Household Hazardous Waste | Data Access Date: 13 March 2025Data Retrieved From: https://novascotia.ca/nse/waste.facilities/facilities.hhw.asp |
| Organic Composting Facilities (new) | Data Access Date: 13 March 2025Data Retrieved From: https://novascotia.ca/nse/waste.facilities/facilities.organic.composting.asp |
| Recycling (new) | Data Access Date: 13 March 2025Data Retrieved From: https://novascotia.ca/nse/waste.facilities/facilities.recycling.asp |
| Municipal Solid Waste Disposal Sites | Data Access Date: 13 March 2025Data Retrieved From: https://novascotia.ca/nse/waste/solidwastedisposal.asp |
| Waste Transfer Facilities (new) | Data Access Date: 13 March 2025Data Retrieved From: https://novascotia.ca/nse/waste.facilities/facilities.transfer.stations.asp |
| Note: “(new)” means the facilities are new added in this update. | |
There are three facility types used in the ENRICH Map:
| Facility Type | Waste Type |
| Waste Disposal Facility | Asbestos WasteConstruction and DemolitionHousehold Hazardous WasteRecyclingSolid Waste |
| Thermal Generating Stations | Coal/PetcokeFuel OilFuel/Natural Gas |
| Other | Organic Composting FacilitiesWaste Transfer FacilitiesAbercrombie Paper Mill Waste PondHazardous Waste Site on Cape Breton Island |
| Note: In the previous version of the ENRICH Map, the Abercrombie Paper Mill Waste Pond and Hazardous Waste Site on Cape Breton Island were listed under “Other Toxic Industries.” | |
- Census Data
The ENRICH Map uses demographic data from the Canadian Census (Statistics Canada, 2021) to show relative socio-economic standings within Nova Scotian communities, including household income, employment, and education level. The data was generated at the Dissemination Area (DA) level.
The following datasets were obtained from Statistic Canada (2021):
- Dissemination Area (DA)
- Population
- Household Income
- Employment
- Education
- Community Boundary Data
The new ENRICH Map uses new community boundaries, different from the previous Community Counts boundaries. The new boundaries are called “Nova Scotia Community Environs” or NS-COMe. NS-COMe are very similar to the Community Counts boundaries, but the ‘communities’ are comprised of Census Dissemination Areas (DAs)NS-COMe units also represent natural clusters of populations and neighborhoods that share some degree of identity and social processes (Saint Jacques et al., 2023).
- Creation of Socio-economic Scores
Household Income: After-tax Income ($) for the population aged 15 years and over in private households. A higher after-tax income results in a higher household income score.
Education: Proportion of Population (%) Aged 25 to 64 Without a High School Diploma. A higher proportion results in a lower education score.
Employment: Unemployment rate (%) for both sexes is used to rank the employment score. A higher unemployment rate results in a lower employment score.
The data is organized by Dissemination Area (DA). There are 1,670 DAs in Nova Scotia. The calculation of the overall score is based on data that includes all three census variables, resulting in a total of 1,577 DA records. This is because we selected the data from DAs that have all three variables at the same time, allowing them to be evaluated at the same level.
Each of the three variables (household income, education, and employment) was given a score between 1 and 5, with 1 being less vulnerable and 5 being most vulnerable.
- The first 315 Das (1 to 315) are assigned a score of 1.
- The second 315 DAs (316 to 630) are assigned a score of 2.
- The third 315 (631 to 945) DAs are assigned a score of 3.
- The fourth 315 (946 to 1,260) DAs are assigned a score of 4.
- The last 317 DAs (1,261 to 1,577) are assigned a score of 5.
The scores for all three variables (income, education, unemployment) are then summed to obtain the overall socio-economic scores, with the highest possible score being 15. The same calculation method is used to determine the scores for each individual census factor.
- Visualizing Proximity to Toxic Facilities
Buffer zones are established using Euclidean distance. These zones are created at various distances from each facility to indicate different levels of exposure risk: 0–1,000 meters (high risk), 1,000–2,500 meters (moderate risk), 2,500–5,000 meters (low risk), and 5,000–10,000 meters (minimal risk).
Reference
Canadian Museum of History (2022), African Nova Scotian Communities Map, retrieved from https://www.historymuseum.ca/teachers-zone/african-nova-scotians-20th-century-canadian-legacies/african-nova-scotian-communities/african-nova-scotian-communities-map/
Province of Nova Scotia (2021), Map of First nations in Nova Scotia, retrieved from https://novascotia.ca/abor/aboriginal-people/community-info/
Province of Nova Scotia, Department of Environment and Climate Change. Retrieved from March 13, 2025, from https://www.novascotia.ca/nse/
Saint Jacques, N., Brown, P., Purcell, J., Rainham, D.G., Terashima, M., & Dummer, T. (2023). The Nova Scotia Community Cancer Matrix: A geospatial tool to support cancer prevention. Social Science & Medicine, 330, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2023.116038.
Statistics Canada (2021), Data products, 2021 Census. Retrieved from https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/index-eng.cfm