Cemetery waste as a substream of municipal waste: research and structure of the selective waste collection in Poland

Abstract

Cemetery waste (CW) constitutes one of the streams of municipal waste (MW). Based on the available data, it can be said that it accounts for about 1% of the mass of MW being generated in Poland. CW management should be carried out selectively. It is estimated that the level of CW selective collection is lower than the average level achieved for MW. This paper presents some solutions concerning the selective collection of CW implemented in selected municipal and denominational cemeteries in Poland. Based on research conducted, the levels of proper separation of glass and biodegradable waste in containers for their selective collection were determined, accordingly as >85% and >80%. Due to the contamination with paraffin residues, the purity of the selectively collected plastic fraction was lower than 20%. The human factor was recognized as the most significant determining efficiency of the selective collection of CW. Therefore, further education of society, as well as promoting good practices in the field of CW management, should be regarded as desirable.

Waste from Cemetery Adornment of Graves – Management and Minimization

“…), so segregation requires the involvement of waste generators in conscious separation into a clean bio fraction and polluted fraction, which can also be further segregated. The lack of a permanent waste management system for cemeteries throughout Poland is also a problem [Janda and Marcinkowski, 2021]. The key to success in cemetery waste management is appropriate organization of waste collection and reduction of waste generation.…”