IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v13y2021i16p9303-d617376.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The Impact of Decommissioning Cemeteries on the Urban Ecosystem

Author

Listed:
  • Anna Myślińska

    (Faculty of Architecture, Gdańsk University of Technology (Politechnika Gdańska), 11/12 Gabriela Narutowicza Street, 80-233 Gdańsk, Poland)

  • Jakub Szczepański

    (Faculty of Architecture, Gdańsk University of Technology (Politechnika Gdańska), 11/12 Gabriela Narutowicza Street, 80-233 Gdańsk, Poland)

  • Witold Dłubakowski

    (Faculty of Architecture, Gdańsk University of Technology (Politechnika Gdańska), 11/12 Gabriela Narutowicza Street, 80-233 Gdańsk, Poland)

Abstract

The decommissioning of cemeteries noticeably transforms the urban fabric. The purpose of this article was to determine what impact the decommissioning of cemeteries has on the urban ecosystem. For this purpose, it was necessary to assess the value of cemeteries within the urban ecosystem. Cemeteries are classified as urban green spaces, and their value as preservers of flora and fauna in local ecosystems has been proven. However, numerous decaying bodies in one place could have adverse effects on the environment. In order to assess the impact of transforming cemetery areas for other uses in the context of sustainable city development, it is necessary to define what these other functions might be. This article presents the main reasons for decommissioning cemeteries and links them with subsequent land use. The history of cemetery locations in five major Polish cities was analyzed to determine the extent to which cemeteries were decommissioned. In the two cities with the highest number of decommissioned cemeteries, further research was carried out in order to establish the typical land use of these former cemeteries, whether this usage is related to the size or type of the former cemetery, and whether change in land use is an advantage or a disadvantage for the urban ecosystem.

Suggested Citation

  • Anna Myślińska & Jakub Szczepański & Witold Dłubakowski, 2021. "The Impact of Decommissioning Cemeteries on the Urban Ecosystem," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-13, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:16:p:9303-:d:617376
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/16/9303/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/16/9303/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Allam, Zaheer, 2019. "The city of the living or the dead: On the ethics and morality of land use for graveyards in a rapidly urbanised world," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Komang Adi Kurniawan Saputra & Daniel T. H. Manurung & Lia Rachmawati & Eka Siskawati & Franklin Kharisma Genta, 2021. "Combining the Concept of Green Accounting with the Regulation of Prohibition of Disposable Plastic Use," International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, Econjournals, vol. 11(4), pages 84-90.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:16:p:9303-:d:617376. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.