In recent years, the importance of looking after our environment and heritage icons has become a major issue. People want to ensure our world is flourishing in years to come and this has encouraged changes for services and businesses, including in regards to burial options.
Rookwood Cemetery, situated in Sydney, is one such area where important changes are being implemented. A draft plan for the cemetery, released on March 1, details changes to management, including ensuring the use of burial sources is sustainable, heritage values are protected and environmental impacts are managed. It also states that the operation and functionality of the cemetery is enhanced as well as its visual appeal. This will not only benefit the land it is on, but also the families who have or will have loved ones buried or interred at the cemetery.
As one of the most historic cemeteries in New South Wales, the Rookwood Cemetery has served people in the area since 1867. It is the largest multicultural necropolis in the Southern Hemisphere, making it vital that the changes that are implemented are reviewed and refined.
The Rookwood Cemetery draft plan was developed in conjunction with all of the former denominational trusts at the cemetery, as well as the new Rookwood General Cemeteries Reserve Trust, the Catholic Metropolitan Cemeteries Trust and other stakeholders. While this input has helped shape a good draft, the state’s Minister for Primary Industries, Katrina Hodgkinson, is also looking for input from the community. The draft will be available for viewing for six weeks and submissions should be made by 12 April 2013.
For more information about the draft plan or Rookwood Cemetery, speak with Catholic Cemeteries & Crematoria, who look after the services at the necropolis.
