Councils warned to secure land for cemeteries

NZCCC Ngā Rau Hotu (New Zealand Cemeteries and Crematoria Collective) warned that cemeteries in Auckland and other regions are almost at capacity. They are pleading with all incoming councils to plan proactively and strategically for local cemetery spaces.

The collective recommended councils begin planning for at least 50 years of capacity in new cemeteries as well as the process of acquiring new land no later than when 10 years of capacity remain.

NZCCC Ngā Rau Hotu chair Daniel Chrisp said some councils had less than five years’ capacity left and were taking too long to secure new land. He also said others had made major decisions about cemetery services without public consultation.

“Almost every cemetery professional I speak to says the same thing – they are running out of space,” he said.

In July, Auckland Council scrapped plans to buy a site at Rewiti, saying it was not viable. Auckland Council general manager of parks and community facilities, Taryn Crewe, said the council is “proactively investigating acquiring other land in Auckland’s north-west for a cemetery”.

Christchurch City Council Community Parks Manager Al Hardy said there are four years of burial provision and 13 years of capacity available in the area. A future cemetery at Templeton will provide citywide burial capacity for up to the next 100 years.

Dunedin, Wellington and Hamilton plans were also reported.

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