No easy fix for plastic scattered through graveyards, says archdiocese caretaker

Pat Rivers of St. John's was astounded when she took a walk to Branscombe's Pond in Mount Pearl and saw plastic littered around the banks.

She was even more surprised when she realized it was coming from the adjacent Mary Queen of the World graveyard.

"We got a little closer and discovered it was plastic flowers that had obviously blown from the cemetery," Rivers told CBC's On The Go. "There were a lot of them and we were horrified because there's no need for it."

The Catholic archdiocese overseeing the cemetery shares her concern.

"There is a time for the end of single-use plastics," said Gordon Holden, supervisor of cemeteries for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of St. John's. "It's a very common problem. One of our biggest expenses and one of our biggest causes of labour is cleaning up cemetery plots."

When CBC Radio's On The Go took a trip to the cemetery to take a look, plastic flowers were found mixed with leaves and snow around the edges of the property. On a windy day, there was a small Christmas tree placed on a grave and decorated with plastic ornaments.

Holden said his team works every spring to clean the edges of the pond, which are outside the archdiocese property.

Rivers said it might not seem like a big deal to most people, but it's a problem that's easy to avoid.

"What about real flowers? That would be even nicer," she said, acknowledging they don't last very long outdoors. "I think your memories would last more than a day or two."

The archdiocese is also hoping people will make the change, Holden said, since its caretakers are tired of cleaning up plastic.

Important to maintain compassion

However, Holden said it's not as easy as banning plastic flowers and ornaments from the graveyards.

"It's certainly a frustration for us. We would like to see no ornaments on the graves, but then on the other side of things, you have to remember where you are. You're in a cemetery. People are grieving the loss of loved ones," he said.

Everyone goes through that process differently, and Holden said it's important to treat everyone with compassion.

"It's almost an impossible thing to fix," he said.

Rivers suggested planting flowers or trees in memory of a loved one — anything other than placing unsecured, plastic flowers on a grave.

"I don't think in this day and age that it's acceptable anymore," she said. "I don't think any of this is biodegradable. So it's either ending up in the environment or in the landfill where it will take four or 500 years to decompose."

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