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

Geomara Flores Gómez, Tania Crisanto-Perrazo, Theofilos Toulkeridis, Greta Fierro-Naranjo, Paulina Guevara-García, Eduardo Mayorga-Llerena, Diego Vizuete-Freire, Esthela Salazar and Izar Sinde-Gonzalez
Additional contact information
Geomara Flores Gómez: Department of Earth Sciences and Construction, Universidad de las Fuerzas Armadas ESPE, Sangolquí 171103, Ecuador
Tania Crisanto-Perrazo: Department of Earth Sciences and Construction, Universidad de las Fuerzas Armadas ESPE, Sangolquí 171103, Ecuador
Theofilos Toulkeridis: Department of Earth Sciences and Construction, Universidad de las Fuerzas Armadas ESPE, Sangolquí 171103, Ecuador
Greta Fierro-Naranjo: Escuela Politécnica Nacional, Environmental Research and Control Center, Quito 170525, Ecuador
Paulina Guevara-García: Department of Earth Sciences and Construction, Universidad de las Fuerzas Armadas ESPE, Sangolquí 171103, Ecuador
Eduardo Mayorga-Llerena: Faculty of Chemical Sciences, Universidad Central del Ecuador, Av. Francisco Viteri and Gato Sobral, Quito 170103, Ecuador
Diego Vizuete-Freire: Instituto Superior Tecnológico Sucre, Higher Technology in Environmental Management, Quito 170129, Ecuador
Esthela Salazar: Department of Earth Sciences and Construction, Universidad de las Fuerzas Armadas ESPE, Sangolquí 171103, Ecuador
Izar Sinde-Gonzalez: Department of Earth Sciences and Construction, Universidad de las Fuerzas Armadas ESPE, Sangolquí 171103, Ecuador

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 3, 1-14

Abstract: 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 BOD 5 , 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.

Keywords: cemeteries; polluted environment; urban planning; soil use; cadaveric decomposition; Ecuador (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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