The urn wall in the cemetery at Sola old church forms a semicircle. When it opens in August, it will be Rogaland’s first, and Norway’s second urn wall. – There are 100 niches, with room for four urns in each. It will be like a grave, says church guardian in Sola, Trygve Torgersen. Church warden in Sola, Trygve Torgersen. Photo: Anett Johansen Espeland / news For the time being, the niches are open, but the dark granite fronts will soon be installed. – We have learned that glass can lead to condensation, and provides a greater opportunity for vandalism. When the urns are placed, the niches are closed and sealed, and the names are engraved on the front. Someone is already waiting to have an urn placed in the wall, and in the future the wall can be extended at the back, if needed. – We want to facilitate different needs. People are moving more, and for the elderly it is a bit difficult to get here, with few buses. Some people would like to avoid weeding and tending. This will be maintenance-free, says Torgersen. For a roughly 20-year period, until 2021, urn walls were prohibited. The law required urns to be covered with soil. Now Tønsberg and Bergen also have plans for an urn wall. The Stavanger ecclesiastical joint council wants the same, and Oslo will reopen urns. Notodden was the first to build an urn wall. It opened in May 2022. Photo: Bo Lilledal Andersen / news More people are choosing cremation – I think it’s on full speed as a trend. Urnewalls are both innovative, functional, and also very beautiful in my opinion, says Alf Bergin, who is the general manager and responsible editor for the website Grav24. Alf Bergin is responsible editor for the website Grav24. Photo: Kjetil S. Grønnestad / Grav24 A so-called memorial grove is also a form of communal grave. The urns are then buried in a common area, while the names are engraved on a memorial plaque above the ground. The number of such named memorial groves has grown from 87 to 138 in five years (external link), according to a new survey by the main organization KA. These trends may be related to the fact that more and more people are choosing cremation, instead of coffin burial. – Last year, 49.6 per cent of the dead were cremated in Norway. I’m pretty sure we’ve already passed 50 percent this year. It is actually increasing quite sharply, says Bergin. In 2015, 40 percent of the dead were cremated, while in 2010 it was 35 percent, according to the Cemetery Association. In the 80s and 90s, the percentage remained stable at around 30 per cent. In the future, Norway may also get what is called a memorial cube. Here, several thousand urns are placed in a monument, which can be visited digitally. – The question is whether we have enough crematoria. A lot is happening now. The legislation in the area is also old and needs revision, says Bergin. This is what a memorial cube can look like. Photo: Illustration / EcoGrave AS/Grav24 The Ministry of Children and Families informs news that KA has received money to survey the need for crematoria and cold rooms in the future. The report is expected to be completed before the summer holidays. It must also shed light on what the investments will cost. This will then be an important basis for the government’s work to create a useful set of regulations, according to the ministry. Urn walls An urn wall means a wall or structure in a cemetery with space for the ashtrays in closed niches. Urns in urn walls must withstand storage for at least 100 years. On the urn wall, the name and data of the person buried outside the individual niche are applied. A grave can be attached to the urn wall when 20 years have passed since the burial. After the end of the celebration period, or if the grave is not fixed after the preservation period, ashes are moved from the urn wall into the urn, and buried anonymously in a cemetery in the municipality. Urne walls, which are also called columbariums, were allowed in Norway in the past, but were banned after 1997, before being allowed again from 2022. Source: Gravplassveileder.no Lack of space plays a role At the same time, the population is aging. In 2050, approximately one in five Norwegians is expected to be 70 or older, according to Statistics Norway. That more people choose communal graves can thus solve space challenges for the burial grounds. – We introduced party fees last year. It has generated some erasure of very old graves. We are not worried, but at the same time we have to think 30-50 years ahead, says church guardian Torgersen in Sola. The aim is to get another urn wall in the municipality, by the church in Tananger. – Yes, we are thinking alternatively to save future burial space. There are agricultural, nature and outdoor areas around here. Getting it re-regulated is a long way off. – Here people can sit down and remember those who have passed away, says church guardian Trygve Torgersen. Photo: Anett Johansen Espeland / news The Burial Act states that every municipality must have a free burial area for at least 3 percent of the population. – The municipalities are staying well within the law’s requirements for the time being. But we have to take the future prospects into account and look at population trends. The elderly wave will also affect burial grounds to the greatest extent, says Bergin. A place to remember the Sun combines an urn wall and a memorial grove in the same place. Mette Berland Vevatne has come to see the memorial grove. She has just lost her father. – We have talked about it in advance, and that is how he wanted it. He wants us to go here and remember and not tend a grave. – What do you think of the new urn wall? – I think it’s really great. Then we can go here and lay flowers for all those who are remembered here. Mette Berland Vevatne has lost her father and is at the memorial grove to see what it looks like. Commemorative plaques on the right. Photo: Anett Johansen Espeland / news – Would not spare anything A path leads to the memorial site, where the urn wall and memorial plaques form a circle. In the middle stands a fountain with a stone bench around it. Here people can sit down, lay flowers and light candles. Park manager Roar Kopperstad in Sola municipality has designed the memorial site at Sola cemetery. Photo: Anett Johansen Espeland / news – The plan was mostly to create a slightly sheltered area. People can retreat and sit in peace to remember those who lie here, says park manager Roar Kopperstad in Sola municipality, who designed the memorial site. The municipality picks up the bill of around NOK 2 million. – Initially, we had thought of concrete, but we know that granite is more durable, says Kopperstad. People who are in the cemetery are curious. – Abroad, we have seen how good it can be. So it will be a bit exciting to see when it is finished. It is only natural that it comes, and there will be less to look after for each individual family, says Ove Langhelle. Ove Langhelle is curious about the new urn wall in Sola. Photo: Anett Johansen Espeland / news Published 12.06.2024, at 15.18
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More and more burial plots are getting urn walls and memorial groves – news Rogaland – Local news, TV and radio
