Editing Cemetery (section)

== Contemporary management ==
[[File:UA students participate in cemetery cleanup for Veterans Day.png|thumb|right|Volunteers cleaning a gravestone in [[Tuscaloosa, Alabama]] in 2023]]
Traditionally, cemetery management only involves the allocation of land for burial, the digging and filling of graves, and the maintenance of the grounds and landscaping. The construction and maintenance of [[headstone]]s and other grave monuments are usually the responsibilities of surviving families and friends. However, increasingly, many people regard the resultant collection of individual headstones, concrete slabs and fences (some of which may be decayed or damaged) to be aesthetically unappealing, leading to new cemetery developments either standardising the shape or design of headstones or plaques, sometimes by providing a standard shaped marker as part of the service provided by the cemetery.

=== Grave digging ===
Cemetery authorities normally employ a full-time staff of [[gravedigger|caretakers]] to dig graves. The term ''gravedigger'' is still used in casual speech, though many cemeteries have adopted the term ''caretaker'', since their duties often involve maintenance of the cemetery grounds and facilities. The employment of skilled personnel for the preparation of graves is done not only to ensure the grave is dug in the correct location and at the correct depth, but also to relieve families from having to dig the grave for a recently dead relative, and as a matter of public safety, in order to prevent inexperienced visitors from injuring themselves, to ensure unused graves are properly covered, and to avoid legal liability that would result from an injury related to an improperly dug or uncovered grave.

Preparation of the grave usually begins before mourners arrive for the burial. The cemetery caretakers fill the grave after the burial, generally after the mourners have departed. Mechanical equipment, such as [[backhoe]]s, are used to reduce labour cost of digging and filling, but some hand shovelling may still be required.

In the [[United Kingdom]] the minimum depth from the surface to the highest lid is {{convert|36|in|cm}}. There must be {{convert|6|in|cm}} between each coffin, which on average is {{convert|15|in|cm}} high. If the soil is free-draining and porous, only {{convert|24|in|cm}} of soil on top is required. Coffins may be interred at lesser depths or even above ground as long as they are encased in a concrete chamber.<ref>Local Authorities Cemeteries Order 1977</ref> Before 1977, double graves were dug to {{convert|8|ft|cm}} and singles to {{convert|6|ft|cm}}. As a single grave is now dug to {{convert|54|in|cm}}, old cemeteries contain many areas where new single graves can be dug on "old ground". This is considered a valid method of resource management and provides income to keep older cemeteries viable, thus forestalling the need for permanent closure, which would result in a reduction of their work force.

=== Cemetery key ===
[[File:Messing Friedhofsschlüssel eines Pfarrers mit Einhändigungsschein und Etui - 1935.jpg|thumb|
Brass cemetery key of a pastor, with handover document and sheath — around 1935]]
The key is a central element of Christianity.<ref>{{Cite web| url= https://www.gnz.de/region/biebergemuend/streit-um-einen-friedhofsschlussel-2770819-JY809083| title=Streit um einen Friedhofsschlüssel| website= gnz.de| publisher= | language= de| access-date= April 8, 2021| archive-date=April 10, 2021| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210410104552/https://www.gnz.de/region/biebergemuend/streit-um-einen-friedhofsschlussel-2770819-JY809083| url-status=live}}</ref> Keys of death and hell as a metaphor and synonym for these often stands the cemetery key. Today it is also integrated in many games as the "graveyard key holder".<ref>{{Cite web| url= https://www.spieletipps.de/tipps-54729-final-fantasy-7-remake-alle-auftraege-neben-storys-mit-loesungen/13/ |title=Final Fantasy 7 Remake &#124; Alle Aufträge und Nebenstorys|date=October 4, 2020| website=spieletipps.de|access-date= April 10, 2021|archive-date=April 10, 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210410083150/https://www.spieletipps.de/tipps-54729-final-fantasy-7-remake-alle-auftraege-neben-storys-mit-loesungen/13/|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Burial registers ===
Usually there is a legal requirement to maintain records regarding the burials (or interment of ashes) within a cemetery. These burial registers usually contain (at a minimum) the name of the person buried, the date of burial and the location of the burial plots within the cemetery, although some contain far more detail. The [[Arlington National Cemetery]], one of the United States' largest military cemeteries, has a registry, ''The ANC Explorer'', which contains details such as photographs of the front and back of the tombstones.<ref>{{cite web | url= http://publicrecords.onlinesearches.com/public-records-blog/2012/11/01/arlington-national-cemetery-burial-database-goes-online/| title= Arlington National Cemetery Records Go Online |archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20130328221858/http://publicrecords.onlinesearches.com/public-records-blog/2012/11/01/arlington-national-cemetery-burial-database-goes-online/ |archivedate=March 28, 2013| website= OnlineSearches| date= November 1, 2012| accessdate=}}</ref> Burial registers are an important resource for [[genealogy]].

=== Land use ===
In order to physically manage the space within the cemetery (to avoid burials in existing graves) and to record locations in the burial register, most cemeteries have some systematic layout of graves in rows, generally grouped into larger sections as required. Often the cemetery displays this information in the form of a [[map]], which is used both by the cemetery administration in managing their land use and also by friends and family members seeking to locate a particular grave within the cemetery.[https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1745&context=law_urbanlaw]

=== Pressures ===
[[Image:City-of-the-Dead.jpg|thumb|right|A tomb retrofitted as a residence in the [[City of the Dead (Cairo)|City of the Dead]]. Cairo's City of the Dead is a centuries-old cemetery that has become home to as many as 1 million Egyptians during the last decades.<ref>{{cite news | url= http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/crossing_continents/africa/1858022.stm | title= Tomb with a view| archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20110512183701/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/crossing_continents/africa/1858022.stm |archivedate=May 12, 2011| publisher= BBC News| website= bbc.co.uk| date= March 6, 2002| accessdate=
}}</ref>]]
Cemetery authorities face a number of tensions in regard to the management of cemeteries.

One issue relates to cost. Traditionally, a single payment is made at the time of burial, but the cemetery authority incurs expenses in cemetery maintenance over many decades. Many cemetery authorities find that their accumulated funds are not sufficient for the costs of long-term maintenance. This shortfall in funds for maintenance results in three main options: charge much higher prices for new burials, obtain some other kind of public subsidy, or neglect maintenance. For cemeteries without space for new burials, the options are even more limited. Public attitudes towards subsidies are highly variable. People with family buried in local cemeteries are usually quite concerned about neglect of cemetery maintenance and will usually argue in favour of public subsidy of local cemetery maintenance, whereas other people without personal connection to the cemetery often argue that public subsidies of private cemeteries is an inappropriate use of their taxes. Some jurisdictions require a certain amount of money be set aside in perpetuity and invested so that the interest earned can be used for maintenance.<ref name= "Planet Money" />

Another issue relates to limited amount of land. In many larger towns and cities, the older cemeteries which were initially considered to be large often run out of space for new burials and there is no vacant adjacent land available to extend the cemetery or even land in the same general area to create new cemeteries. New cemeteries are generally established on the periphery of towns and cities, where large tracts of land are still available. However, people often wish to be buried in the same cemetery as other relatives, and are not interested in being buried in new cemeteries with which there is no sense of connection to their family, creating pressure to find more space in existing cemeteries.

A third issue is the maintenance of monuments and headstones, which are generally the responsibility of families, but often become neglected over time. Decay and damage through vandalism or cemetery maintenance practices can render monuments and headstones either unsafe or at least unsightly. On the other hand, some families do not forget the grave but constantly visit, leaving behind flowers, plants, and other decorative items that create their own maintenance problem.

===Re-use of graves===
{{see also|Desecration of graves}}
[[File:Madrid cemetery DSCN1581.jpg|thumb|Cemetery excavations, like this one in [[Madrid]], can alleviate overcrowding.]]
All of these issues tend to put pressure on the re-use of grave sites within cemeteries. The re-use of graves already used for burial can cause considerable upset to family members. Although the authorities might declare that the grave is sufficiently old that there will be no human remains still present, nonetheless many people regard the re-use of graves (particularly their family's graves) as a [[desecration]]. Also re-use of a used grave involves the removal of any monuments and headstones, which may cause further distress to families (although families will typically be allowed to take away the monuments and headstones if they wish).

On the other hand, cemetery authorities are well aware that many old graves are forgotten and not visited and that their re-use will not cause distress to anyone. However, there may be some older graves in a cemetery for whom there are local and vocal descendants who will mount a public campaign against re-use. One pragmatic strategy is to publicly announce plans to re-use older graves and invite families to respond if they are willing or not. Re-use then only occurs where there are no objections allowing the "forgotten" graves to be re-used. Sometimes the cemetery authorities request a further payment to avoid re-use of a grave, but often this backfires politically.

A practical problem with regard to contacting families is that the person who initially purchased the burial plot(s) may have subsequently died and locating living family members, if any, many decades later is virtually impossible (or at least prohibitively expensive). Public notice about the proposed re-use of graves may or may not reach family members living further afield who may object to such practices. Therefore, it is possible that re-use could occur without family awareness.

Some cemeteries did foresee the need for re-use and included in their original terms and conditions a limited tenure on a grave site and most new cemeteries follow this practice, having seen the problems faced by older cemeteries. Common practice in Europe is to place bones in an [[ossuary]] after the proscribed burial period is over.<ref name="Planet Money">{{cite web| url= https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYDYDThuJe4| archive-url= https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211030/xYDYDThuJe4| archive-date= 2021-10-30|title=Can Your Cemetery Really Bury You Forever? | work= [[Planet Money]]| publisher=  NPR| date=April 18, 2018|via=YouTube| accessdate= }}{{cbignore}}</ref>

However, even when the cemetery has the legal right to re-use a grave, strong public opinion often forces the authorities to back down on that re-use. Also, even when cemeteries have a limited tenure provision in place, funding shortages can force them to contemplate re-use earlier than the original arrangements provided for.

Another type of grave site considered for re-use are empty plots purchased years ago but never used. In principle it would seem easier to "re-use" such grave sites as there can be no claims of desecration, but often this is made complicated by the legal rights to be buried obtained by the pre-purchase, as any limited tenure clause only takes effect after there has been a burial. Again, cemetery authorities suspect that in many cases the holders of these burial rights are probably dead and that nobody will exercise that burial right, but again some families are aware of the burial rights they possess and do intend to exercise them as and when family members die. Again the difficulty of being unable to locate the holders of these burial rights complicates the re-use of those graves.

As historic cemeteries begin to reach their capacity for full burials, alternative memorialization, such as collective memorials for cremated individuals, is becoming more common. Different cultures have different attitudes to destruction of cemeteries and use of the land for construction. In some countries it is considered normal to destroy the graves, while in others the graves are traditionally respected for a century or more. In many cases, after a suitable period of time has elapsed, the headstones are removed and the now former cemetery is converted to a recreational park or construction site. A more recent trend, particularly in [[South America]]n cities, involves constructing high-rise buildings to house graves.<ref>{{cite web | url =http://www.emporis.com/en/bu/nc/ne/?id=101659
 | title= New trend: Cemetery Skyscrapers| website= [[Emporis]] |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20061111140859/http://www.emporis.com/en/bu/nc/ne/?id=101659 |archive-date= November 11, 2006 | url-status =usurped
 | access-date= }}</ref>

Cemeteries in the US may be relocated if the land is required for other reasons. For instance, many cemeteries in the southeastern United States were relocated by the [[Tennessee Valley Authority]] from areas about to be flooded by dam construction.<ref>{{cite web | url= http://www.tva.gov/river/landandshore/culturalresources/cemeteries.htm | title= Cemeteries Relocated by TVA| website = TVA.org | publisher = Tennessee Valley Authority | archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20090826114007/http://tva.gov/river/landandshore/culturalresources/cemeteries.htm |archivedate=August 26, 2009| accessdate= July 13, 2009}}</ref> Cemeteries may also be moved so that the land can be reused for transportation structures,<ref>{{cite news | url= https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5020426 | title= O'Hare Growth May Mean Moving a Cemetery| archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20211207234456/https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5020426 |archivedate=December 7, 2021 | website= NPR.org| date=November 19, 2005| accessdate= July 13, 2009}}</ref><ref>[http://clgrabbit.blogspot.com/2009/05/st-johannes-cemetery-relocation.html St. Johannes Cemetery Relocation.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110708031357/http://clgrabbit.blogspot.com/2009/05/st-johannes-cemetery-relocation.html |date=July 8, 2011 }} Accessed July 13, 2009.</ref> public buildings,<ref>[http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/daily/local/114640.php "Remains in 19th century graves downtown ID'd as soldiers".] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160531231402/http://tucsoncitizen.com/daily/local/114640.php |date=May 31, 2016 }} ''The Tucson Citizen'', April 17, 2009. Accessed July 13, 2009.</ref> or even private development.<ref>[http://www.plattecountycitizen.com/PDF/7-4-07_News_Articles.pdf "Cemetery Relocation Battle Ongoing".] {{webarchive |url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080509064851/http://www.plattecountycitizen.com/PDF/7-4-07_News_Articles.pdf |date=May 9, 2008 }} ''Platte County Citizen'', July 4, 2007. Accessed July 13, 2009.</ref> Cemetery relocation is not necessarily possible in other parts of the world; in [[Alberta]], Canada, for instance, the ''Cemetery Act'' expressly forbids the relocation of cemeteries or the mass exhumation of marked graves for any reason whatsoever.<ref>{{Cite web| url= https://www.alberta.ca/cemeteries-registration.aspx| title=Cemeteries registration| website= alberta.ca| access-date= January 5, 2022| archive-date= January 5, 2022|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20220105092359/https://www.alberta.ca/cemeteries-registration.aspx|url-status= live}}</ref> This has caused significant problems in the provision of transportation services to the southern half of [[Calgary]], as the main southbound road connecting the south end of the city with downtown threads through a series of cemeteries founded in the 1930s. The [[C-Train|light rail transit]] line running to the south end eventually had to be built directly under the road.

In Singapore, burials are limited to 15 years before graves are exhumed. This has led to a preference of cremation over burial among Singaporeans.<ref name= 2018Stats>{{cite web| url= https://www.cremation.org.uk/Singapore-2018|title=Singapore Cremation Statistics 2018| website= cremation.org.uk| publisher= The Cremation Society of Great Britain |access-date= 2020-12-21|
archive-date= January 11, 2023| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230111091002/https://www.cremation.org.uk/Singapore-2018|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Crypt Burial System |url= https://www.nea.gov.sg/our-services/after-death/crypt-burial-system |access-date=2023-01-11 |website= nea.gov.sg |language=en |quote= The New Burial Policy, introduced in 1998 to address the issue of land scarcity, limits burial to 15 years. After this period, graves will be exhumed and the remains cremated or re-interred, depending on one's religious requirements. |archive-date= January 11, 2023 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230111090959/https://www.nea.gov.sg/our-services/after-death/crypt-burial-system |url-status=live }}</ref>