The Roques Blanques Cemetery opens 'The Forest Path,' the largest natural space in Spain for burying ashes.

Barcelona, October 26, 2017 – Àltima, an expert in managing funeral services, funeral homes, crematories, and cemeteries in Catalonia, has inaugurated the new natural space for ash disposal, 'The Forest Path.' This is the largest natural space in Spain dedicated to ashes, located at the Comarcal Cemetery of Roques Blanques in El Papiol (Baix Llobregat), publicly owned and managed by Àltima since 1990. This new service allows for the burial of biodegradable wooden urns along a one-kilometer forest path—over 100 meters of which are already accessible—utilizing an existing trail within the cemetery grounds.

The urns at 'The Forest Path' are buried directly into the earth along one of the path's margins, which is one meter high and reinforced with logs. Families can engrave the deceased’s details on the wooden urn and receive GPS coordinates for the burial site, ensuring it remains perfectly integrated into the surrounding vegetation. Since its launch last September, 'The Forest Path'—designed by the architecture firm Batlle&Roig—has already seen five urns buried. According to Joan Ventura, Director of Cemeteries at Àltima, “This service further establishes Roques Blanques as a leading cemetery in Spain for sustainable ash management alternatives. For over 10 years, we have committed to projects that address cremation in line with our philosophy of being an environmentally conscious cemetery fully integrated into nature. This is demonstrated by established initiatives such as the Forest of Calm, with 1,048 planted trees, the Rest Garden, with 1,178 services performed, the Rest Fountain, with 250 services, and the Family Trees, which now has 363 specimens.”

Àltima highlights that ecological alternatives like those implemented at Roques Blanques promote more sustainable and environmentally respectful burial practices. In this regard, the company notes that 73% of Àltima's funeral service users already opt for coffins without contaminating elements, and 38% choose biodegradable urns.

New ash alternatives in Sitges and Viladecans

Àltima has launched two additional ash spaces at the cemeteries of Les Pruelles in Sitges and Viladecans. At Les Pruelles, the company has created the Poppy Garden, a landscaped area that allows for the placement of hundreds of porcelain poppies, each identified with the name of the deceased, under which the ashes are buried in a biodegradable urn. This initiative, which simulates a field of poppies as a memorial, is pioneering and unique in the country. Additionally, the site has introduced Family Rain Urns, made of bronze, which are innovative columbaria designed as family burial sites where ashes are dissolved by rainwater.

On the other hand, the Cemetery of Viladecans now features the Rest Garden, a zen-style space where ashes can be scattered and the deceased’s details engraved on a dark granite stone wall. A cypress tree located on the side of the central area serves as a reference point for the new space.

Initiatives like these highlight the growing importance of cremation, not only in large cities but increasingly in smaller communities. According to data provided by Àltima, cremation has an annual increase of nearly 1.6% in Catalonia. However, the company has reported a higher growth rate of 4% for 2016. In terms of demand for cremation services in the province of Barcelona, Àltima places this trend at 46.55%, above the Catalan (42%) and Spanish (40.33%) averages. This trend is expected to grow progressively over the next decade and stabilize around 60% in major population centers in Catalonia.

Flower arrangement workshop for All Saints at Roques Blanques

Next Saturday, October 28, the Comarcal Cemetery of Roques Blanques will host a free floral arrangement workshop to learn how to create All Saints’ Day bouquets. The aim is to raise awareness among cemetery users to use natural flowers or plants when making an offering at their loved one's grave, "thus avoiding the problem of plastic waste caused by artificial flowers and plants, which are highly polluting," explains Joan Ventura, Director of Cemeteries at Àltima. In this sense, the company has long recommended the use of natural flowers through communications sent to families using the 19 cemeteries it manages, as they also allow for composting, useful for maintaining the gardens of these sites.

The workshop will take place at the Central Services Square of the Roques Blanques cemetery in two 30-minute sessions (11:00 AM and 11:30 AM), each for a maximum of 20 people. Registration is required by calling 93 673 05 35.