Historical and contemporary cemeteries in the urban area. The modern development of the city vs. human remnants in the soil

Abstract

Purpose Death is inextricably linked to the functioning of the biosphere, including the presence of humans on Earth. The remains of 117 billion people who have ever lived on Earth are mostly hidden in the soil. Hence, the organization, use and subsequent fate of cemeteries and their surroundings should also be considered from the perspective of pedeogenesis. The soils of such areas are subject to multifactorial human pressure, as reflected in their often complex soil profiles. Materials and methods The situation of a Central European city of medieval origin, Zielona Gora (Poland), characterized by the presence of 39 cemeteries within its current boundaries, is presented. The location of these cemeteries was shown in light of other factors of human pressure on soil, including relation to buildings construction and a land use. The analysis of the current form of use of burial sites and their immediate surroundings used the technique of field research and a city's documentation query. In order to reflect the specific impact of the form of use of post-burial grounds on soil properties, selected soil characteristics of exemplary historical cemeteries are presented. The main soil characteristics were evaluated using standard methods of laboratory analysis. Results and discussion Some cemeteries are reflected in the city's planning documents – there are all contemporary cemeteries and a few historical ones. The vast majority of historical burial sites are not reflected in the plans. This makes modern urban development directly adjacent to them and even encroaches on their territories. Soil analysis has shown that human remains are still present in soils of these areas, even hundreds of years after cemetery closure. In addition to these, the soils are characterized by elevated C and P content relative to the bedrock. The arrangement of the necrosol profile is disturbed by the significant presence of construction and municipal waste. The most soil characteristics, including grain-size composition, pH, EC, sorption properties, organic and inorganic carbon content, as well as macronutrients and heavy metals, are strong influenced by the land use form and urban pressure on cemetery areas. Conclusions It is common practice around the world to bury human bodies or ashes in soil, hence their remains contribute to soil profiles. Proper identification of cemetery soil profiles, with a clear indication of necric features, is difficult due to the different uses of cemetery land. The soils of former cemeteries, by reason of their relationship to buildings and urban parks, take on the characteristics typical of such urban land use forms.