I think you're being overly dismissive of thousands(?) of years of human tradition. Yeah, we don't act completely rationally when it comes to death, because death is a deeply emotional thing, and we're not robots. People honor the dead by burying them in beautiful places, it's pretty simple.
I would argue that for most people the ritual is much more important. Because, again, we’re not robots, traditions are deeply important to us, and some kind of send-off, be it burial, cremation, Viking burial, etc is part of the grieving process. It may not be important to some, but if you find yourself wondering “why do cemeteries get good real estate”, that’s why.
There are thousands of years of history behind the cemetery tradition, part of a culture that's dominant in certain parts of the world. That there are other human cultures which have different practices doesn't make it any easier to change that one.
It’s an interesting subject with a mix of practical, religious, and economic incentives resulting in a huge range of different outcomes in even closely related cultures.
On the contrary, most of us are usually far too reverential to outdated traditions. We've very, very slowly abandoned the ones that resulted in completely unnecessary human suffering. But it doesn't mean the remaining ones are any more useful or justified than the ones that caused more direct or obvious harm.
You can have both though, you can have a plaque of remembrance which doesn't involve harsh chemicals and waste.
If composting isn't a good option then there's natural funerals where unembalmed people are buried in lightweight and compostable caskets and have trees planted over their grave.
I don't understand this "we're not robots, it's ok if we act irrationally" argument. While it's correct, it doesn't justify irrationality. If it could, you could justify anything with this. You could say it doesn't matter if God exists, humans are not robots and we want to believe in it so we do. Sure, if that's what you want, more power to you, but your argument is not convincing. I visit my dead family's grave but that doesn't mean this is an inalienable part of human experience. It's just culture, like eating yogurt with sugar vs salt.
I don't think new cemeteries are generally placed in prime real estate. But as cities grow and cemeteries remain unrelocated, what was rural pastureland becomes something more like prime real estate.
When you’re in a city, particularly an old one, try visiting a cemetery. It’s nearly always nice and quiet and generally there is someone or something of interest.
