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The Gold Coast’s new plan to boost tourism? An underwater cemetery

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No, seriously. Mayor Tom Tate is pushing for people to spend their afterlife sleeping with the fishes with the council floating the idea of building a memorial dive site in the city’s Broadwater.

A diver at the Neptune Memorial Park in Florida. Credit: YouTube

Based on the Neptune Memorial Reef in Florida in the United States (naturally the US is already onto this trend), people’s ashes would be buried in different locations of the site to attract tourists.

According to The Australian, the Council had originally planned to build an underwater pyramid (the new Atlantis?), but have now turned their attention to the cemetery – and it could have a lot of benefits.

A watery grave – literally

The ashes are mixed with environmentally-friendly materials that can be formed into shapes to create an artificial reef, making it more eco-friendly than traditional burial or cremation.

It’ll also be a lot cheaper than your average funeral with a cremation and placement package setting you back about $6,200.

“Major cities in Australia and the world are running out of spaces to bury people,” Cr Tate told Channel 7.

“In time to come, if people want to dive, say hello, they can do so and have a bit of fun with it.”

Well, if you can build your own coffin, why not?

Lauren is a journalist for villages.com.au, agedcare101 and The Donaldson Sisters. Growing up in a big family in small town communities, she has always had a love for the written word, joining her local library at the age of six months. With over eight years' experience in writing and editing, she is a keen follower of news and current affairs with a nose for a good story.


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