Proposal of an Initial Environmental Management and Land Use for Critical Cemeteries in Central Ecuador

Cemeteries are sites for the final disposal of human bodies that constitute a source of contamination of soil and water as a result of the cadaveric decomposition generated. The current research performed an initial study on the contamination of soil and water due to the influence of cemeteries and...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Sustainability 2022-02, Vol.14 (3), p.1577
Main Authors: Flores Gómez, Geomara, Crisanto-Perrazo, Tania, Toulkeridis, Theofilos, Fierro-Naranjo, Greta, Guevara-García, Paulina, Mayorga-Llerena, Eduardo, Vizuete-Freire, Diego, Salazar, Esthela, Sinde-Gonzalez, Izar
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Cadavers
Cemeteries
Chemical oxygen demand
Contamination
COVID-19
Decomposition
Dry season
Electrical conductivity
Electrical resistivity
Environmental impact
Environmental management
Environmental regulations
Funerals
Groundwater
Land use
Land use management
Landfills
Leachates
Legislation
Microorganisms
Physicochemical analysis
Population
Rainy season
Regulation
Security
Sediment pollution
Soil analysis
Soil contamination
Soil pollution
Soil water
Surface water
Urban areas
Urbanization
Waste disposal sites
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Summary:Cemeteries are sites for the final disposal of human bodies that constitute a source of contamination of soil and water as a result of the cadaveric decomposition generated. The current research performed an initial study on the contamination of soil and water due to the influence of cemeteries and verified compliance with the legislation regulating land use and occupation of Central Ecuador (PUGS) with the aim of proposing an environmental and territorial solution to the problems generated by the mismanagement of cemeteries, through the physicochemical analysis of soil and water and studies of land use compatibility. The results indicate the tendency of contamination caused by the studied cemeteries, since the samples taken in both the rainy and dry season for the measurement of parameters BOD5, COD, DO, pH and electrical conductivity fail to meet the established requirements of the Ecuadorian and international environmental regulations. In addition, land use conflicts were encountered in the cemetery grounds. It is concluded that the existing cemeteries should be subjected to more detailed environmental analysis and subsequently should be treated as security landfills in the closure and post-closure stage. Also, it has been concluded that the cemeteries should not be located in urban or peri-urban areas.
ISSN:2071-1050
2071-1050
DOI:10.3390/su14031577