Planning Pool

I have had a few more thoughts on green cemetery practices. I recently happened upon a sidewalk garden that is apparently being nourished by a cherished pet. The idea of resting where you lived and becoming a part of the scenery is an attractive one. How can this be accomplished in urban settings?

Burial marker for a beloved pet, on a residential roadside in Vancouver, BC. Photo by author.

Promession is a procedure similar to cremation that essentially results in compost. The body is frozen in liquid nitrogen, reduced to powder through ultrasonic vibration, and filtered of metals, which are recycled. The remainder is rapidly biodegradable and can be buried or scattered.

According to Barbara Higham, by confronting … Continue Reading

New York's Washington Cemetery. Thanks to Limonada on Flickr for the great Creative Commons photo!

“We have had bribes offered […] but we have nothing to be bribed for. We have no room.”
So said Dominick Tarantino from Washington Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York, one of the first burial places to reach capacity. No new cemeteries have been established for fifty years, so inflated prices of New York real estate continue after death, where residents vie to be buried where they lived.

As cities continue to densify, will this scenario be repeated everywhere? Historically, municipal parks and cemeteries were planned in tandem. The Rural Cemetery Movement played a significant role in North America’s park and landscape architecture history:
Planned as serene and spacious grounds where the combination of nature … Continue Reading