Living cemetery in Eupen

The cemetery in Eupen, located in the city centre and surrounded by trees, plays an important role in the city’s climate and as a habitat for plants and animals. For several years now, the number of vacant graves, which are usually covered with gravel (see the ‘before’ picture to the right), has been increasing. In line with the motto ‘More life in the cemetery and more green instead of grey’, a pilot project was launched in autumn 2022 with the support of the Walloon Region’s ‘Biodivercité’ programme at various locations in the cemetery to enhance the green and cooling, park-like character of the Eupen cemetery. The initial question was: how can vacant graves be designed in a nature- and climate-friendly way without requiring a lot of maintenance throughout the year?

Urban and peri-urban areas

• Respect and/or improve the specific ecological characteristics of the area (e.g. the topography, the type of landscape, the local plant and animal life);
• Set up a biodiversity-friendly management system (e.g. rewilding, reduced mowing of parks, gardens, talus, ponds, no chemicals);
• As much naturalness as possible/as little alteration as possible of the initial landscape (landscape, quality of water, of soil, …);
• Incorporate the developments into the surrounding area and environment;
• Use native species/subspecies that are more resilient and resistant to climate change, if appropriate.

The cemetery service employees of the city of Eupen maintain the cemetery. Since the sedum mats are easy to care for, they only need to remove unwanted growth, such as tree seedlings, once or twice a year and rake up fallen leaves in autumn (just like on the gravel areas). Watering is not necessary throughout the year.