Masterton District Council is appealing to the public to find relatives of four people who have plaques in the unsafe cremation wall in Riverside Cemetery before it is demolished.
The wall was built in 1987, but was assessed by engineers and deemed unsafe in the long term, according to property and facilities officer Charlie Fairbairn.
A decision was made about 2006 to remove the wall and so far at least 120 relatives have been contacted.
Mr Fairbairn said there had been no trouble contacting most families, but people move around a lot these days and often overseas, which increases the difficulty of finding a direct relative.
He said it was important they were found so the council can let them know of its plans and ask for permission to move the ashes. "If for some reason we haven't found any relatives of the deceased, we have taken steps to advertise our intention to remove the plots," he said.
