World View
Global Dispatches From ABC News Reporters
ABC News staff around the world report on what makes the news and what doesn't.
RECENT POSTS
MONTHLY ARCHIVES
« Previous | Main | Next »
Britain Approves Double-Decker Graves
November 14, 2008 12:04 PM
By Gabriel O'Rorke, ABC News London
The British Government has come up with a two-tiered plan to solve the problem of overcrowded cemeteries. The Times has reported that after 2009, city councils will be permitted to dig up graves and rebury coffins deeper to make space for a second burial on top.
Only abandoned graves dating back more than 100 years would be considered for reburial under the new plan, and graves would be reused only if there were no objections, religious or otherwise, from family members.
Regarding the headstone, a second inscription would be added to the original but, in cases where the existing headstone is damaged, only the newer inhabitant would be recorded.
The shortage of space is most critical in London cemeteries, but it's predicted to become acute in cemeteries throughout England and Wales in the coming years. The move is a pre-emptive measure as well as an ultimate solution, since in the case of an extreme burial space shortage, remains would have to be disposed of.
A government survey released last year predicted that cemeteries throughout England and Wales would run out of space in roughly 30 years. But in London the problem is three times as great as elsewhere in the country: Several parts of the city have already run out of burial space, while other areas will fill up in less than 10 years.
City councils are taking advantage of the high demand by charging nonresidents up to $1,500 for burial.
Ian Hussein, director of the City of London Authority cemetery and crematorium division, told the Times: “We are running out of room, it's as simple as that, unless they introduce legislation to allow reuse.”
Meanwhile, Tim Morris, chief executive of the Institute of Cemeteries and Crematorium Management and a member of the government's burial advisory body, warned that without the proposed action of reusing graves, “we are going to have serious disposal problems.”
Not for more than 150 years has it been permitted to exhume remains to make more space in graveyards: Exhuming became illegal under the 1852 Burial Act.
Currently in the United Kingdom, alternative burial options include cremation; woodland burial; cryonics (freezing the corpse); burial in the garden; and burial at sea.
Read more blogs from Gabriel O'Rorke
Read more blogs from the ABC News Staff
November 14, 2008 in Gabriel O'Rorke | Permalink | User Comments (11)
You can follow this conversation by subscribing to the comment feed for this post.
It makes sense to reuse old graves. If you've been dead more than 100 years, there will be very few people alive who are still mourning your loss.
Posted by: Jenna | Nov 14, 2008 12:56:01 PM
Yet another reason I want to be cremated. Who's to say in a hundred years from now today's cemetaries aren't being dug up to make room for a new freeway or mini mall. I'd prefer to not have acheologists from the 22nd century cataloging my remians. In today's world ones 'final' resting place seems to be anything but.
Posted by: freedomfighter1975 | Nov 14, 2008 4:01:25 PM
Lets be real. If you want to keep useing the land to bury then you must reuse old plots. I say be sure to remember the one there before and add another name to stone and such. this way all is remebered. I will be creamated the Amereican Indian way. Scatter my ashes back to earth. Reuse the land. Peace!!!
Posted by: Plain Truth | Nov 14, 2008 5:20:21 PM
Seems a very practical solution, but Ughhhh!
Posted by: Carole | Nov 14, 2008 5:32:04 PM
so stupid....try cremation
Posted by: nimi | Nov 14, 2008 5:40:50 PM
This is just the most nauseating story. The way we handle dead bodies in the modern world, the funeral industry--it's all so yuckie! Cremation is good, but we all should just be put in a pine box, unpreserved, and then buried somewhere out in the country where we can add to the soil.
Posted by: crazybones | Nov 14, 2008 5:50:14 PM
I think this is going to be a bigger problem than people realize. I am in the funeral and cemetery business...so go with me on this. Once you dig up a grave, and then dig it deeper to put the old casket lower...the ground becomes a lot more vulnerable. Then, when you dig it again to put the new person in, it will be even more suceptable to "caving in" on the first casket. This danger will be increased by the fact that all over England...the ground is incredibly saturated with water. You are going to have cemeteries that are full of cave-ins, fallen head stones, and very un-attractive grounds. They are going to find that this is a bad idea...and another alternative must be found. Mausoleums, cremation, burial at sea, etc, all sound better.
Posted by: Johnny Palms | Nov 14, 2008 5:58:37 PM
How about mass grave?
Oops!
No offense intended here, folk. It's just a humor
Posted by: what667 | Nov 14, 2008 5:59:49 PM
always wondered why not vertical graves?
Posted by: Lawrence | Nov 15, 2008 2:30:16 AM
For long back, even before 1992, In Kerala, India, we started doing this among Christians. Where, we call it "family tomb". Initially, it was like Double-Decker as the British plans now. Now we use something "re-usable". ie, which can be re-opened and re-used. But we restrict the re-usability to the next-of-kins only. Personally, we plan to re-open & renovate my grandpa's grave so that we can use it for my parents, me & my wife and my children. It is very practical here as we keep more family values and like to be buried in our ancestor's tomb. Here we even have a proverb meaning "To be buried in same grave" to indicate intimate relations, like "Oh... they live to be buried in same tomb".
Posted by: Varghese Chacko | Nov 17, 2008 1:57:01 AM
Also in Kerala, we have a "Cellular system" where in a grave yard, there will be one (or more) building. In the building there will be space called "cells", mostly 3"x3"x6", arranged as a matrix of say 6x4. In the cellular system, 6 cells horizontally & such 4 or 5 rows will exist. Each cell can be reopened & reused. Advantage is that with space for some 6 graves, we can construct 24 cells, each can be re-used. I don't know this method exist in Europe.
Posted by: Varghese Chacko | Nov 17, 2008 2:06:42 AM
Post a comment
