In many countries around the world there is a shortage of burial space in high density urban areas. These range from certain US cities (i.e., New York), to those all over the UK, to South Africa (Cape Town), China (Beijing) and even tiny Nepal. As prime real estate continues to become unavailable and unaffordable the amount available for cemeteries diminishes. Even the increased number of cremations hasn’t eased the problem. So will burials eventually become a status symbol of the wealthy?
In New York, since the late 1990’s, there has been only one cemetery in Manhattan that still performs in-ground burials, and all the lots, except for a few reserved for VIP’s were sold out years ago. In New York’s other boroughs, grave space is among the hottest of commodities despite the credit crunch and melt down of the real estate market.
It has been reported that Catholics in the borough of Queens can not be buried in the borough’s two largest Catholic cemeteries unless the lots were bought years ago.
And although it is theoretically possible to create new cemeteries in Westchester (a county north of New York City), it is unlikely that they will be built because of the scarcity and high cost of undeveloped land, said Richard Fishman (as far back as August, 2002), director of the Division of Cemeteries in the New York State Department of State, which oversees about 1,900 nonsectarian cemeteries in the state.
Even though China is the 4th largest country in the world by land mass (after Russia, Canada and the US) its large population, overcrowded cities, and need to burry over 8 million people annually poses huge challenges. “Our population is a big problem. Graves take up more and more space each year and we must address this,” said Zhang Qing, vice chief of Beijing’s Funeral and Internment Management Section. And with choice land in Beijing becoming more scarce and in high demand, a speculative boom has hit China’s burial business, with speculators frantically buying plots to resell to the highest bidder.
In the UK, the cemetery burial space shortage is so bad that some areas could have no room for the dead by 2020. In a survey of burial grounds conducted by the Department for Constitutional Affairs (DCA) published last year, London is predicted to run out of space for burials in 12 years. Many cemeteries are already closed to new burials. Relatives are often forced to travel many extra miles just to tend and visit gravesites. Over 10% of the 2,000 cemeteries owned by local authorities in England and Wales are closed to new burials. According DCA research, an additional 12% are open only to burials in existing graves. According to the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE), cemeteries can account for up to half of all green open space in some municipalities. In the borough of Newham, for example, 60% of public open space is made up of cemetery land.
Even in Kathmandu, the capital of tiny Nepal, there is a shortage of available burial space.. “It takes over half-an-hour to find a spot for a new grave these days. We have to dig at several places as we find human remains in most of the places we dig,” said Ram Bahadur Tamang, a grave-digger, for over 20 years, with the Crematorium Management Service Committee (CMSC), Pashupati Aryaghat. Mr. Bishnu Prasad Nepal, a CMSC official, said that growing population in Kathmandu valley has further aggravated the problem. “A few years back, we were burying one body a day,” said Nepal who oversees the burial service. “Now we are burying four to five dead a day.”
Research shows that, even with the increased use of cremations in many countries, there is still a significant number of people who are buried. Some religions, like Judaism and Islam, even require burial. With the shortage of cemetery burial spaces in many urban areas the law of supply and demand has caused a huge increase in the value of existing unused burial lots. And, using China as an example, we find that as countries become more affluent they tend to have more elaborate and expensive funeral ceremonies that include burial vs. cremation.
As we all know, when something becomes scarce speculators step in and raise the price. As the price of various commodities and services increase only those who can afford them use them. And, as only the more affluent can purchase these products and services they become associated as status symbols and become more desired by those who can not afford them. It is an economic and social cycle that is well know and understood. So, CemeterySpot wonders if in the coming year’s burial plots, especially in urban areas, will become even more expensive and will become part of the cycle of affluence. Hmmm…maybe, as a good investment, it’s time to consider buying that cemetery plot now.
