Amnesty International backs fight for clean water near Shelburne dump

Amnesty International has joined a long-standing community fight in Shelburne, Nova Scotia, to provide clean drinking water to approximately 50 Black residents living near a former landfill that operated from 1946 to 2016. The organization's director of research, policy and advocacy, David Matsinhe, visited the site in October 2025 and described the conditions as shocking for a First World country. Amnesty has written to Shelburne town council demanding safe water, dump cleanup, and accountability for what it calls a case of environmental racism. Residents in the African Nova Scotian community have dug wells that may be contaminated by the dump's buried and burned waste, including materials from residences, the local hospital and a military base. Researchers from McMaster and Dalhousie universities are studying links between the dump and elevated cancer rates. The town is in early stages of decommissioning the landfill, with groundwater tests showing high conductivity values indicating potential contaminants. A 2023 Dillon Consulting report identified areas with waste that could migrate out from the landfill.