Community / Community group decides not to pursue any new funeral or burial ideas
A LOCAL community development organisation has decided against pursuing any options for alternative funeral or burial services.
Viking-themed and space memorials were touted as some of the more unusual options, before being thrown out.
It comes after the Community Development Company of Nesting (CDCN) undertook a feasibility study on new services such as water cremation, natural burial sites and memorial ceremonies.
But CDCN will not pursue any of the options due to “several barriers” including high costs and a lack of demand.
However, the organisation is set to share its detailed findings with Shetland Islands Council’s burial services team.
CDCN received funding to undertake a study on alternative funeral and burial services, with an aim to understand current gaps in local provision and whether the development group could potentially help ease capacity issues for some existing services.
Shetland does not have a crematorium, and some of its traditional burial grounds are reaching capacity.
The study, which included a public survey, appeared to reveal considerable interest in eco-friendly burial alternatives, with nearly 69 per cent of respondents expressing positive attitudes towards natural burial sites.
These usually happen in a designated area within natural settings instead of a graveyard.
The person could be buried in an eco-friendly coffin, such as ones made with wicker or bamboo, or a shroud, and embalming is not used in the process.
But the feasibility study said green burials would only bring “modest financial returns” – with a suggested operating profit of around £5,500 a year.
This is deemed not enough to offer the level of sustainability required to justify the investment.
Water cremation – which uses alkaline hydrolysis and comes with environmental benefits compared to conventional cremations – was quickly ruled out due to its significant start-up costs.
CDCN said a loan worth an estimated £1 million would have been needed, and it is projected the service would run at a loss too.
The study found around 20 per cent of Shetland residents chose to be cremated, which is much less than the UK average.
The study also looked at the idea of Viking-themed funerals, which could involve ashes of a person being burned on a galley.
There would be “speculative demand” for these which creates financial risk, CDCN concluded.
The development company also explored the idea of space memorials, such as scattering ashes near to the edge of space.
“However, the environmental concerns, high costs, and lack of clear demand for such services made this option unfeasible,” the group said.
Also included in the feasibility study was the idea of pet burials.
After deciding against progressing any of the options, the organisation is now turning its attention to alternative income-generating opportunities identified in its newly developed community action plan, which will continue to support the local areas of Nesting, Girlsta, and Wadbister.
Director Ellis Keith said: “We are grateful to have had the opportunity to explore these ideas in depth.
“While we are not going to be pursuing the development of the proposed services, the study has provided invaluable insights which will help to guide future decisions locally.
“We remain committed to using our resources wisely, ensuring that our projects continue to benefit the communities we represent, while being financially sustainable.
“We’ll also keep exploring initiatives that might serve the wider Shetland community, as such ideas arise.”
Become a member of Shetland News
Shetland News is asking its many readers to consider paying for membership to get additional features and services: -
- Remove non-local ads;
- Bookmark posts to read later;
- Exclusive curated weekly newsletter;
- Hide membership messages;
- Comments open for discussion.
If you appreciate what we do and feel strongly about impartial local journalism, then please become a member of Shetland News by either making a single payment, or setting up a monthly, quarterly or yearly subscription.
Already a member? Sign in to hide this message.
