Death

It is a tradition, especially in the darker months of the year and particularly on Remembrance Day, to place a light in the cemeteries in memory of the deceased.

In the darker months of the year, and especially on Remembrance Day, it is a tradition to place a light in the cemeteries in memory of the deceased. For a long time now, not only grave candles, but increasingly also flickering LED grave lights. Together with the cemetery associations, the town of Hofheim am Taunus is calling on people to do without this form of lighting, as the environmental impact of battery-powered lighting is extremely poor. Raw materials are mined in the Global South to produce the battery cells, production is energy-intensive and disposal is particularly problematic. This is because the batteries, which contain environmentally hazardous substances, are not normally removed before being thrown away and therefore end up with other waste in the residual waste bins at the cemeteries and later in a landfill site. The classic red grave light with a candle and plastic coating is also not entirely unproblematic from an ecological point of view due to the plastic content, but performs significantly better in the environmental balance compared to LED grave lights. The most sustainable option, however, is to use grave candles with a glass body that can be refilled after burning. Further information can be found at the following link:

kulturerbe-friedhof.de