Reducing and reusing via green burials in a Portland cemetery Ir al contenido principal



Reducing and reusing via green burials in a Portland cemetery

New Jersey-based real estate developer Ed Bixby never expected to get into the cemetery business. But when he and his mother were visiting his infant brother’s grave at Steelmantown Cemetery in Upper Township, New Jersey, they were horrified by the state of the grounds. Bixby told the owner he wanted the cemetery cleaned up, or he would buy it. The owner sold him Steelmantown for a dollar in 2007. Fourteen years later, Bixby is a cemeterian who owns four historic cemeteries and is president of the Green Burial Council.

wicker casket prepared to be lowered into ground

The problem with historic cemeteries is they’re expensive to maintain while often bringing in little or no profit. When they become unkempt, they’re neighborhood eyesores and offensive to people whose loved ones are buried there. Bixby has been able to use his developer’s eye to improve the grounds and raise community awareness of cemeteries as local green spaces that the living can also use. He also figures out how to maximize space within his cemeteries so they can continue serving people’s interment needs for many years to come. As populations grow and urban spaces become tighter, figuring out how to make the most of existing cemeteries is an important lesson in reducing and reusing.

Related: World’s first “living coffin” made of mycelium is used in a burial

Bixby now owns Steelmantown, two cemeteries in California and one in Oregon. Inhabitat talked to him about his latest acquisition, Historic Columbian Cemetery in Portland.

welcome entry sign for Historic Columbian Cemetery in Portland, Oregon

Acquiring a Portland cemetery

Like many cemeteries, Historic Columbian started out as a family burial ground outside the city. But Portland long ago overtook it, and now 18-wheelers roll over it on the I-5 overpass.

Originally, the cemetery belonged to the Love family. But since 1857, it’s served the community. The cemetery had lots of ups and downs in upkeep and reputation over the years. Somewhere around 2000, a nonprofit group formed and took over cemetery care from a nonresident owner. They fixed the problems: overgrown grass and shrubs, vandalized stones, disordered burial records. But by 2017, the group was running out of energy.

“They had a lot of good intentions,” Bixby said. “But they couldn’t really be successful at what they were doing. The only way a cemetery survives is to produce income to take care of itself. And they really weren’t selling any plots. They really had no money to maintain it.” The group looked for somebody to take the cemetery off their hands, but local municipal and religious organizations weren’t interested.

A mutual friend introduced Bixby to the nonprofit group. He saw great potential in the cemetery, especially for natural burial. “That’s fairly popular in Oregon and there’s several locations. But there was really no one doing it in an urban setting. And when my friend contacted me about Columbian, it is in Portland proper, and we would be able to offer something at a reasonable cost to the citizens there within the city limits itself. So that’s what made us interested in it.” He also appreciated the cemetery’s rich history, with occupants including pioneer families that traveled the Oregon Trail, a freed enslaved person who became a minister and many other interesting people.

In June of 2018, the nonprofit group voted to transfer the cemetery to Bixby. He acquired Historic Columbian for the cost of drawing up the paperwork.

gazebo and gravestones in a cemetery

Vision for a green community space

Bixby and his wife, Helena, immediately oversaw a massive cleanup of the grounds. Once they felt the cemetery was presentable, they reintroduced it to the community with a fall festival. “It was not about the cemetery itself,” Bixby said. “It was about the community.” About 40 vendors set up booths along the road through the cemetery.

“The community actually rediscovered the cemetery itself. And now the community understands it’s there and to be used. And people come there every day, and that’s a good thing. They’re there to not only visit their loved ones, but maybe walk the dog.” Future possible plans for the cemetery include butterfly gardens and a mural of Oregon history painted on the wall of a warehouse adjacent to the property.

untreated wood coffin prepared to be lowered into ground

Natural burials and use of space

Historic cemeteries often face incomplete records and confusion about which graves are filled or have even been sold. Sometimes officials prematurely deem cemeteries full, which immediately renders them unprofitable and a drain on the owner’s financial resources.

Bixby’s real estate and development experience has been very helpful in figuring out how to efficiently use the space. The nonprofit group that ran Historic Columbian before Bixby took over thought they had about 250 plots left. The way he sees it, there are at least 1,000 plots for ground burial, including 200 in the green garden. “And then of course with cremation, the sky’s the limit,” he said. The cemetery has room for thousands of one-by-one cremation spaces for direct earth cremains burial. “There’s every bit of 100 years of life left in it or more. Which is good for the community.”

Historic Columbian is what’s known in the green burial world as a hybrid model. People can opt for a traditional burial with embalming, coffin, headstone and concrete vault. Or they can take the eco-friendly route of a hand-dug grave, wicker casket or simple shroud in the green burial section. Here, graves are marked with natural fieldstones. The Bixbys restored the cemetery’s original wrought iron fence to frame the natural burial ground.

So far, the cemetery has had about a half-dozen natural burials. Bixby said, “We’ve reengaged the community, so now community members are coming back and buying plots.”

+ Historic Columbian Cemetery

Images of Steelmantown Natural Cemetery via Green Burial Council; images of Historic Columbian Cemetery via Teresa Bergen / Inhabitat



from INHABITAT https://ift.tt/3wgTg4v
via IFTTT

Comentarios







Popular post

imagenes del medio ambiente para dibujar

imagenes del medio ambiente para dibujar

5 Benefits of Drip Irrigation Systems

If you want a stunning yard and a low water bill, a drip irrigation system could be for you. Image: Jacky Parker Photography/Getty Images If you live in one of the parts of the country that’s been struggling with drought (or you just don’t want to spend a fortune on your water bill), you’ve probably felt that you face a choice with your outdoor areas. You can either be water conscious or have a beautiful, lush yard, right? When you’ve opted for traditional irrigation systems like sprinkler heads, that’s often true. But, good news, that’s not your only option as far as types of irrigation systems go. If you want a beautiful yard without the high water usage — and resulting bill! — a drip irrigation system could be just what you need.  What is a drip irrigation system? This way to water your plants uses dripped water. A drip irrigation system runs either a perforated hose or drip emitters (connected by a hose) under the soil throughout your planting bed. Water drips through small h

New riverside development in China will be an urban renewal

Architects VenhoevenCS have won a major riverside redevelopment in Shenzhen, China . They hope to protect large areas of land from flooding while also creating a vibrant new urban identity for the Bao’an district. The Pailao River Blueway Project constitutes a new biodiverse landscape along the central Pailoa River, an area under rapid urban development where rainfall intensity is increasing. Architects are using this project to design with the water instead of against it. It includes elements such as ponds, green roofs, urban farming plots, wetlands and soft banks, contributing to a natural sponge effect to absorb excess water from the river . Related: 100-year-old railway yard turned into a green space VenhoevenCS also has their sights set on integrating urban regeneration in the area. They have planned cultural and social spaces, including pavilions and parks for cyclists and pedestrians. The design illustrates their nature-inclusive approach, reshaping how humans and the natu

Say hello to the new Toyota electric vehicle, the bZ4X

Toyota is trying to win the electric vehicle game with a stylish new SUV loaded with techy features. The all-electric bZ4X will be rolling onto the lots of U.S. auto dealers this spring. If the name doesn’t immediately strike you as catchy, it might help to understand that “bZ” stands for “beyond zero.” The bZ4X is the first of seven in Toyota’s new line of bZ vehicles. That’s seven out of 15 BEVs, to throw another acronym at you. BEVs are battery electric vehicles, as opposed to HEVs (hybrid electric vehicles) or PHEVs (plug-in hybrid electric vehicles). Related: Consider these factors before buying an electric vehicle All these Vs will help speed Toyota toward its goal of carbon neutrality by 2050. Already, Toyota has more than 20 million models on the world’s roads. The company has pledged to invest another $70+ billion in  EVs  over the next nine years. So, back to the bZ4X. According to Toyota, the new “BEV-dedicated platform, a first for Toyota, was developed with Subaru

NASA to test the world's first electric airplane

NASA has shared details of its new all-electric plane that is set to take off to the sky this fall. The plane is designed to run fully on electric batteries , departing from the tradition of fuel-powered planes. If all goes well, this will be the first step toward achieving a cleaner, cheaper, and quieter future for aviation.  Known as the X-57, the plane is lightweight compared to traditional planes . Its weight helps it use less power over the same distance compared to its equal fuel-powered planes. Further, the plane produces less noise as compared to fuel-powered options. According to NASA, the plane is currently being prepared for initial tests, which will be conducted in the desert east of Los Angeles. Related: Rolls-Royce unveils prototype for world’s fastest electric plane The plane borrows its design from a four-seater plane constructed by the Italian Tecnam corporation. The main reason for this is to help in comparison of the two models of the design. The experts at NASA w

Biomimicry house hints at a solution to the climate crisis

Houses separate us from nature. At least, that’s the idea we’ve had until now. Architecture that uses biomimicry , permaculture and related practices to keep nature in our building spaces offers a green alternative. B+H Architects Director of Biomimicry Jamie Miller is an advocate of sustainable building practices like biomimicry to help with the climate crisis. Biomimicry creates an architectural option that keeps us connected to nature, without removing the biodiversity from the spaces where we live and work. Now the B+H Architects’ newest residential project shows us how a home can blend right into nature itself. Related: It looks like a shark fin and helps urban river flooding A house that disappears into the landscape “Imagine stepping inside a house that disappears into a forest all without ever leaving the city,” B+H said. A landowner in Bengaluru, India wanted to achieve just that, connecting his home to nature within a dense urban area. He didn’t just want to live wit

What are stellar earthquakes that make stars move?

What are stellar earthquakes that make stars move? The Gaia mission of the European Space Agency revealed the earthquakes that occur thousands of light years away. Argentine astronomers explain the scope of this space telescope and its discoveries. In 2013 the European Space Agency (ESA), launched a unique space mission: the Gaia space observatory, a spacecraft designed specifically for astrometry: the science that measures the positions, distances and motions of stars with a precision never seen before. Scientists say the mission aims to build the largest and most accurate 3D space catalog ever made of the observable universe, with a total of approximately two billion astronomical objects, mainly stars, but also planets, comets, asteroids and quasars, among other fascinating objects in the vastness of space. This week, ESA released a new update of data collected by Gaia in the last three years, after having observed 10 million stars and space objects, which led to the publication of s

Bananatex launches a sustainable material revolution at Milan Design Week

A party of three has collaborated to create a multi-purpose material sourced entirely from banana leaves. Swiss bag brand QWSTION, a yarn specialist from Taiwan, and a Taiwanese weaving partner spent four years developing the new material, which is being revealed at the 2019 Milan Design Week. The strong, flexible material, called Banantex, offers a new universal option in the search for sustainable materials . Beginning at the source, the banana leaves come from a natural ecosystem of sustainable forestry in the Philippines. The banana trees grow naturally without the use of pesticides or other chemicals. Plus, they do not require any additional water. The banana plants are a boon to an area previously eroded by palm plantations, bringing back vegetation and a livelihood for local farmers. Related: See how banana trees are recycled into vegan “leather” wallets in Micronesia With a long history of creating materials from sustainable resources, QWSTION saw the strength and dura

New biofabricated clothing made from algae goes through photosynthesis just like plants

There are a products that completely revolutionize the fashion industry for their eco-friendly approach and innovative vision. Although the fashion industry has made strides over the past few years in terms of sustainable clothing production, there is still a long ways to go. Thankfully, a handful of designers are coming up with incredibly innovative solutions to really change the concept of eco-fashion . One such visionary is Canadian-Iranian designer Roya Aghighi , whose new line of clothing, Biogarmentry, is made from algae that turns carbon dioxide into oxygen via photosynthesis. Made in collaboration with University of British Colombia (UBC) and Emily Carr Univeristy, the Biogarmentry line is a revolutionary design within the world of eco-fashion . While most sustainable designers are searching for fabrics that don’t harm the environment, Aghighi went straight to the environment for her unique fabric, using living, photosynthetic cells in its design. Related: SAOLA offers su

Diet for Depression: 8 Foods To Eat And Avoid

According to the World Health Organization, more than 264 million people suffer from depression globally. [1] Symptoms of depression can include sadness, lethargy and a general loss of interest in life. There are a number of ways to combat this and a diet for depression can help not only your mental health but your well-being as well. In fact, a 2017 study found that the symptoms of people with moderate-to-severe depression improved when they received nutritional counseling sessions and ate a more healthful diet for 12 weeks. [2] Just imagine having higher levels of optimism, energy, positivity, focus, and a greater interest in life. Well, you can. Making some adjustments to your diet can help with your depression. Not only are there foods that you could eat to help with your depression but there are foods that you should avoid. Foods That Help With Depression 1. Oily Fish Oily fish such as salmon, sardines, herring, light tuna and mackerel are a healthy source of Vitamin D. [3]

Eco Vlog News

Welcome to my Vlog about the environment and general news related to it. The advancement of technology and the expansion of the human being are inevitable and an essential mark left by progress as a race, but it is important in the process not to lose respect for the environment and the world in which we live. Become aware of its deterioration as an initial measure to begin to become aware of how to take care of it. For these reasons, our little grain of sand as a contribution to an ecological blog in which we offer you the latest Internet news as a reference so that you can inform yourself and become aware of it. In the articles you can find the respective news sources and most current magazines on which the subject in question is being addressed.