Alternative burial solutions gaining momentum amid Sydney's dwindling cemetery space
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Sydney's housing crisis is not just affecting the living.
Each year, tens of thousands of people are buried in Sydney, though a recent audit into the city's state government-owned burial spaces shows plot availability is fast dwindling.
All but two of Sydney's Crown cemeteries — from Rookwood and Liverpool in Western Sydney to Waverley in the east — are forecast to run out of space entirely within the next decade, according to a 2023 Department of Planning and Environment audit.
The two with ample space are a newly-opened cemetery in Varroville and another approved in Wallacia, forecast to have more than 160,000 new burial plots.
Metropolitan Memorial Parks was set up by the state government to operate these cemeteries, and industry engagement manager Jason Cooper said they were feeling the squeeze.
"A new cemetery hasn't been made available for metropolitan Sydney in over 80 years," he said.
While traditional burials such as in-ground and cremation remain the most common, a number of alternative methods are emerging.
A natural burial involves placing a person's body in a shallow grave, where it is left to decompose naturally.
Individual gravesites are often marked discreetly, or not at all.
Independent funeral director and end-of-life doula Rebecca Lyons said natural burials can be used to save space, because of the potential to reuse the site.
Ms Lyons, who is also the president of the Natural Death Advocacy Network, said natural burials were offered at 14 locations in Australia in 2020.
By 2024, that number had reached close to 30.
"You get to care for the person, you get to shroud them, you get to place them in a grave," she said of the green burial method.
Another alternative is a sea burial.
However, the rules governing these are strict.
A permit is required, and they can only be carried out if the deceased had a "demonstrated connection" to the sea, such as spending time in the navy or being a fisherman.
The proposal, by architects including David Neustein, involves turning large swathes of grazing land on Sydney's outskirts into natural burial spaces, forming so-called 'burial belts'.
"Once you run cattle or sheep over that land, the soil is highly degraded, and it's not really useful for growing anything," Mr Neustein said.
"You could use the income derived from the burial to revegetate and restore that land, and over time it would improve."
Mr Neustein is no stranger to the process of natural burials.
In the tiny locality of Bendoc, just south of the NSW-Victoria border, lies a natural burial space he helped design.
When the father of his partner and Other Architects co-director Grace Mortlock passed away, they drove from Sydney to lay him to rest there.
"Every time we think about that space, it's just calm and green and cared for," he said.
Tui Davidson is part of a growing number of people who want to be composted when it's their time.
The process, which was created by US company Recompose, involves placing a body in a specialised above-ground vessel filled with organic matter such as wood chips and straw.
Over a process of between eight and 12 weeks, the person is transformed into nutrient-dense soil.
Human composting is currently legal in Germany and 13 US states.
Ms Davidson founded Earthly Remains, a not-for-profit organisation aimed at pushing for the practice to be allowed in Australia.
"While some people may find that a bit revolting and hard to think about, I just consider it brilliant. It sums up everything I want about my dead body," she said.
"It's a natural process, it creates incredible energy, and that energy can be used to grow something else."
A petition is currently before NSW Parliament, calling on the government to recognise and regulate human composting.
Ms Davidson concedes the potential benefits of the practice as a space-saving measure cannot be fully realised until it is made legal.
The Lebanese Muslim Association's chief operations officer, Khaled Alameddine, said there were crucial rules around burial for the Islamic community.
"We have to follow the process, we have to follow our religion in burial … we can't move away from this."
Ensuring burial spots are easily accessible is also key, especially when cemeteries are located near large Muslim communities.
"People go to Rookwood because it's very close to them, and they're used to it," Mr Alameddine said.
Mr Cooper said while traditional memorialisation would always hold a place in society, people are "looking for different ways to celebrate the life of their loved one".
Mr Neustein, who has worked on master plans for various new cemetery proposals across Sydney, hopes there will be a shift in the way non-traditional burials are viewed.
"We need incentives for [natural] burial grounds, we need funding for burial grounds, we need governments at all scales to want burial grounds in their areas, rather than just seeing it as a kind of quirky eco-alternative."
By Rhiannon Soliman-Marron
Each year, tens of thousands of people are buried in Sydney, though a recent audit into the city's state government-owned burial spaces shows plot availability is fast dwindling.
All but two of Sydney's Crown cemeteries — from Rookwood and Liverpool in Western Sydney to Waverley in the east — are forecast to run out of space entirely within the next decade, according to a 2023 Department of Planning and Environment audit.
The two with ample space are a newly-opened cemetery in Varroville and another approved in Wallacia, forecast to have more than 160,000 new burial plots.
While traditional burials remain the most common, a number of alternative methods are emerging. (ABC News: Simon Amery)
Metropolitan Memorial Parks was set up by the state government to operate these cemeteries, and industry engagement manager Jason Cooper said they were feeling the squeeze.
"A new cemetery hasn't been made available for metropolitan Sydney in over 80 years," he said.
While traditional burials such as in-ground and cremation remain the most common, a number of alternative methods are emerging.
From green to sea burials
Since they began offering natural burials at Frenchs Forest Bushland Cemetery, Mr Cooper said the uptake had left them "pleasantly surprised".A natural burial involves placing a person's body in a shallow grave, where it is left to decompose naturally.
The natural burial area at Frenchs Forest Bushland Cemetery, where bodies are buried in biodegradable caskets. (Supplied: Metropolitan Memorial Parks)
Individual gravesites are often marked discreetly, or not at all.
Independent funeral director and end-of-life doula Rebecca Lyons said natural burials can be used to save space, because of the potential to reuse the site.
Ms Lyons, who is also the president of the Natural Death Advocacy Network, said natural burials were offered at 14 locations in Australia in 2020.
"You get to care for the person, you get to shroud them, you get to place them in a grave," she said of the green burial method.
Another alternative is a sea burial.
However, the rules governing these are strict.
A permit is required, and they can only be carried out if the deceased had a "demonstrated connection" to the sea, such as spending time in the navy or being a fisherman.
Human composting and 'burial belts'
While currently available natural burial sites in Sydney form part of existing cemeteries, an ambitious plan by a group of Sydney-based architects hopes to address burial space shortages.The proposal, by architects including David Neustein, involves turning large swathes of grazing land on Sydney's outskirts into natural burial spaces, forming so-called 'burial belts'.
Rebecca Lyons is fascinated by alternative burial methods. (Supplied)
"Once you run cattle or sheep over that land, the soil is highly degraded, and it's not really useful for growing anything," Mr Neustein said.
"You could use the income derived from the burial to revegetate and restore that land, and over time it would improve."
In the tiny locality of Bendoc, just south of the NSW-Victoria border, lies a natural burial space he helped design.
When the father of his partner and Other Architects co-director Grace Mortlock passed away, they drove from Sydney to lay him to rest there.
"Every time we think about that space, it's just calm and green and cared for," he said.
Tui Davidson is part of a growing number of people who want to be composted when it's their time.
The process, which was created by US company Recompose, involves placing a body in a specialised above-ground vessel filled with organic matter such as wood chips and straw.
Human composting is currently legal in Germany and 13 US states.
Ms Davidson founded Earthly Remains, a not-for-profit organisation aimed at pushing for the practice to be allowed in Australia.
"While some people may find that a bit revolting and hard to think about, I just consider it brilliant. It sums up everything I want about my dead body," she said.
"It's a natural process, it creates incredible energy, and that energy can be used to grow something else."
A petition is currently before NSW Parliament, calling on the government to recognise and regulate human composting.
Ms Davidson concedes the potential benefits of the practice as a space-saving measure cannot be fully realised until it is made legal.
Why some groups 'can't move away' from tradition
While the push for alternative burials to be explored is gaining momentum, it is not being seen as a complete replacement for traditional methods.The Lebanese Muslim Association's chief operations officer, Khaled Alameddine, said there were crucial rules around burial for the Islamic community.
"We have to follow the process, we have to follow our religion in burial … we can't move away from this."
Ensuring burial spots are easily accessible is also key, especially when cemeteries are located near large Muslim communities.
"People go to Rookwood because it's very close to them, and they're used to it," Mr Alameddine said.
Mr Cooper said while traditional memorialisation would always hold a place in society, people are "looking for different ways to celebrate the life of their loved one".
Mr Neustein, who has worked on master plans for various new cemetery proposals across Sydney, hopes there will be a shift in the way non-traditional burials are viewed.
"We need incentives for [natural] burial grounds, we need funding for burial grounds, we need governments at all scales to want burial grounds in their areas, rather than just seeing it as a kind of quirky eco-alternative."
By Rhiannon Soliman-Marron
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