Every year, large amounts of waste are collected after the All Saints' Day holiday. According to Johan Stråhle, a diocesan engineer in Västerås, the number of decorations and candles has increased sharply in recent years.
It has become an extravagance that is no longer reasonable, he says.
Avoiding candles that contain paraffin and palm oil is a good way to help the environment. Paraffin is made from fossil oil and produces carbon dioxide when burned, contributing to the greenhouse effect. Palm oil contributes to the destruction of rainforests.
I definitely don't want to tell people not to light candles. Buy candles made from real stearin instead of paraffin candles, even if they're cheaper, says Stråhle.
Stråhle particularly advises against plastic decorations and battery-operated string lights, but even candles contain plastic that cannot be composted. He also urges visitors to reduce the number of decorations.
It's a nice tradition and it's for our dead, but you can limit yourself a bit, he says.
At Skogskyrkogården in Stockholm, thousands of grave candles are thrown away.
They're really nice when they're lit. But then they're thrown away, and it's clear that they're waste, says Annelie Sjöström, communications manager at the cemetery administration.
What do you think?