A concerned Coatbridge man has hit out at plans to remove memorial trees from a cemetery in the town to make more room for burial space.
Stephen Mullen says the council’s move to alter the town’s Coltswood Cemetery will “decimate” the site and change the grounds from being “lovely” to “looking horrendous”.
He has a memorial tree dedicated to the memory of his dad in the cemetery and has questioned why the local authority want to remove plant life that is precious to him and many others who have paid to have them placed at the site.
The council has confirmed “a few memorial trees” are set to be removed to “create additional burial space”.
Stephen told Lanarkshire Live: “I cannot believe the council are taking away the memorial trees. People have paid for them and they are such an important part of the cemetery.
“We have one for my dad and it just won’t be the same if it’s removed.
“This is going to decimate the cemetery. The grounds are currently lovely, and people are treated to beautiful surroundings when visiting their loved ones’ graves; taking away the trees will make it look horrendous.
“There is a lot of wildlife on the site and in the trees too – where are they going to go?”
Stephen added: “It looks like the council were planning to extend the cemetery to a park behind the site but sulphur and asbestos was found on a small part of the ground.
“But surely there are other plans they could have made? And most people don’t even seem to be aware of what the council are planning.”
A council spokesperson said: “The council considered creating an extension to Coltswood but, as the ground was unsuitable, we are now starting work to create additional burial space within the existing cemetery.
“This requires removal of a number of council owned trees and a few memorial trees.
“We are trying to contact the families affected to advise them and arrange a replacement tree.
“The work will ensure local families can continue to use Coltswood for new burials for the foreseeable future.”
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