A NOTTS council will spend £30,000 looking for sites where it can open new cemeteries
Ashfield District Council will pay consultants to find sites because cemeteries in two towns could be full within the next three years.
It says Hucknall Cemetery and Sutton Cemetery, in Sutton-in-Ashfield are almost at capacity.
And even now, there is no space for double plots in Hucknall.
The local authority expects the cemeteries in Hucknall and Sutton to be full somewhere between 2016 and 2021.
Councillor John Wilmott, deputy leader of Ashfield District Council, said: "Cemeteries have a very short life span. We are not sure how long, but it is essential to look at the problem and look at the way forward for the future. You can't be without a cemetery can you?"
Hucknall Cemetery is currently affected by a high water table, which is now less than six feet six inches deep.
As a result, the council can no longer offer one plot suitable for two people who wish to be buried together at the cemetery, as these would have to be dug deeper than this. Nigel Lymn Rose, managing director at funeral directors AW Lymn, welcomed the moves to find new space for burials in the district.
The district council still has places left at Kingsway Cemetery, in Kirkby-in-Ashfield, but he is concerned at the lack of space for couples to be buried together. "It is a sensible time to look at additional cemetery space," said Mr Lymn.
"We are not stuck for space in Notts at the moment, but in the near future we will be needing additional burial space.
He added that loved ones would now have to pay for two graves, side by side, which would be around £500 more expensive than paying for one plot.
A spokesman for Co-operative Funeralcare, which has a branch in Portland Road, Hucknall, said: "Many couples make a final request that they be buried together after death. We welcome the council's foresight in dealing with the problem of burial space."
