In large cities cremation and recycling of burial plots might have to be considered more widely, as land pressure increases. On the point of "paupers graves", in Sydney they don't exist, its cremation. The deceased is transported to the morgue, then after the appropriate paperwork, taken to Botany Crematoria for incineration, then the "ashes" are disposed of on what's termed common ground (a garden), all very simple.

In Trumps America during the Covid it was burial by bulldozer. A long pit dug, stack in coffins, cover them over. Who can forget New Orleans, due to a very high water table, the dead are placed in crypts on the surface. That is until a big storm comes and the deceased go floating off down the street.

In London during the Great Plague, people were "buried" on top of the ground in mass graves in church yards. Today there are churches in London where the church is below the level of the surrounding cemetery.

After the Battle of Waterloo, large pits were dug by the survivors, not the dead, in went the dead from both sides, body parts, dead animals and their bits and pieces, end of story.

Most dead in the world today are disposed of in one way or another by their relatives or the local villages.

Nathan, thanks for the topic, something different, despite the moaning's of a couple of the Usual Suspects, who think they should be the arbitrators of Forum content and not GY. They see themselves as part of the highbrow born to rule class and the rightful arbitrators on everything.

Thanks for your feedback NathanJ.

It would indeed be good to see governments and
even Churches and charities making some provision
for the funerals of the most vulnerable people in society.

People who are poor, old, homeless, disabled,
and have no families or any one who can help.
We have a national health scheme. Why not something
similar for those who are eligible to cover funerals?
I'm sure
we'd all contribute something to a scheme like this.
It's a matter of working out the details. But surely
it could be done?

Paul,
An answer to the question of lack of burial space is vertical burials.
The first interments could be at 10x, x being the height required for a burial.
Then when all the area of the cemetery is used for 10x, the whole area would be reused for 9x.
With modern posthole borers there should be no problems.

Issy, you're no bloody conservative, you've got a real laugh out of me!

"With modern posthole borers there should be no problems"

Pardra; "We are gathered here today to farewell dear Uncle Thaddaeus, much loved Oddfella and bingo player.... Start the boring machine....

The congregation; "Oh no! the machines gone to deep... its bring up old Grandpa Remus!...stop the bloody machine! Someone cover grandmas eyes.

Machine driver; "It wont stop, the off buttons stuck!

Ahhh! there's Aunty Sal, she's in pieces! Someone turn off the bloody machine!

That boring machine idea actually has promise.

Instead of horisontal burial, why not vertical. You could save the space, with 4 or 5 vertical holes in the space of one horisontal. Surely we only use horisontal now as it is the accepted norm. They could not dig a 10 foot deep, 0.5 meter round hole with a pick & shovel.