Angus Council faces a challenge to find new land to bury the area’s dead.
Ten of the area’s 72 cemeteries are already full.
And four have less than a decade of provision remaining.
Those include one of the district’s largest burial grounds – Western Cemetery in Arbroath.
The south west of the district is also rapidly running out of available space.
It is a situation which has led the authority to restrict advance sales of lairs in some cemeteries.
And it mirrors pressures facing other local authorities in Courier country.
In Fife, unused burial plots are being bought back to extend the life of some cemeteries.
Angus cemeteries closed to burials
Angus has a cemetery strategy which monitors remaining space at all of the area’s burial grounds.
A council spokesperson said: “There are currently 72 public cemeteries and churchyards which are maintained by Angus Council.
“All have been audited using the open space quality audit to provide an overall picture of current service provision.
“13 of these churchyards are now closed to burials.
“Ten burial grounds have no new lairs available and only accommodate re-opens.”
The council added: “Of the burial grounds with lairs available to purchase four have less than ten years provision.”
Those locations are:
- Arbroath Western Cemetery
- Monikie Churchyard
- Murroes Churchyard
- Panbride Churchyard
“Like Fife we have restricted pre-sales and are actively pursuing new sites to maintain provision in these areas,” the council added.
“Of the remaining burial grounds, five have less than twenty years, four less than forty years and six less than sixty.
“Our remaining cemeteries and churchyards all have over a hundred years provision.”
“We recently opened extensions to our cemeteries in Kirriemuir and Aberlemno and are currently looking to acquire new sites to maintain burial capacity in the south west of Angus.
“We will also consider the reclamation of unused lairs when the Burials and Cremations Scotland Act is fully implemented.”
There were previous plans to solve the Arbroath issue with an extension on ground near the Western Cemetery.
But in 2019 council chiefs admitted the Elms land near Cairnie Road was unsuitable.
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