The latest from the eco-front. . . "green" burials

[Porsche-O-Phile]

Yes, you heard it here first.



http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/science/12/26/green.coffin.ap/index.html



Recycling in its purest form -- among the worms

PORTLAND, Oregon (AP) -- Cynthia Beal wants to be an Oregon cherry tree after she dies. She has everything to make it happen -- a body, a burial site and a biodegradable coffin.

Cynthia Beal wants to be buried in a biodegradable recycled paper coffin.

"It is composting at its best," said Beal, owner of The Natural Burial Company, which will sell a variety of eco-friendly burial products when it opens in January, including the Ecopod, a kayak-shaped coffin made out of recycled newspapers.

Biodegradable coffins are part of a larger trend toward "natural" burials, which require no formaldehyde embalming, cement vaults, chemical lawn treatments or laminated caskets. Advocates say such burials are less damaging to the environment.

Cremation was long considered more environmentally friendly than burials in graveyards, but its use of fossil fuels has raised concerns.

Eco-friendly burials have been popular in Britain for years, but industry experts say it's starting to catch on in the U.S., where "green" cemeteries hosting natural burials have sprouted up in California, Florida, New York, South Carolina and Texas.

The majority of eco-friendly burial products come from overseas -- including the Ecopod, which is made in the United Kingdom -- although there are a few domestic makers.

Options range from natural-fiber shrouds to fair-trade bamboo caskets lined with unbleached cotton. There are also more traditional-looking handcrafted coffins made of wood certified by the Forest Stewardship Council.

The market is potentially huge. U.S. funeral homes generate an estimated $11 billion in revenue annually and that figure is sure to grow as baby boomers age.

There are already specialty funerals, featuring caskets with custom paint jobs and urns with the insignia of a favorite team. Industry experts say eco-friendly funerals are just an extension of such personalized end-of-life planning.

Biodegradable containers cost from around $100 for a basic cardboard box up to more than $3,000 for a handcrafted, hand-painted model.

"It's hard to tell if it's a fad or if it's here to stay," said Bob Fells, of the International Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association. "We are certainly positioning ourselves that if this is what the community wants, we are ready to serve them."

The Green Burial Council is working on certification programs to verify the commitment and quality of providers who say they are going natural.

"What we are trying to do is to make sure this concept doesn't get 'green-washed' down the drain," said Joe Sehee, the council's founder and executive director

[legion]

I plan on pissing on Al Gore's grave.

[Nathans_Dad]

I've never really understood why it is "traditional" to embalm bodies. Once the soul is gone, it's just a hunk of flesh. Why try and preserve it for all eternity?

My mom announced some time ago that she wants to be cremated. At first I was against the idea, but the more I think about it, the more it makes sense.

[Moneyguy1]

I will use up my carbon credits all at once and be cremated.

[MT930]

Burial poor use of real estate. Glad to see private enterprise is catering to the green crowd. We now have organic burials I think they have been around for years?

[red-beard]

Soylent green is people...

[Hard-Deck]

Well, now we can plow the cemetary and mulch them after 2 year and bury some more in the same spot/s.

[Moneyguy1]

In many places in Europe they do that. ABout every century, remains in the older sections are plowed into a "common site" and the land is recycled for new tenants.

[NICKG]

when i go, i already told my wife i want to go out viking style....

[Gogar]

I always thought that embalming and burial was Western religion's tribute to the Egyptians . . . At least that's what they said when I watched part one of "Zeitgeist the movie." HAH.

Preserve the body so when the soul returns it will have something to use for it's time here on earth.

Also, if there's no embalming and burial, how are we going to make Zombie movies anymore?

+1 for cremation here.

[NICKG]

i have that movie...somewheere, i should watch it..

[bigchillcar]

if it rains at the graveyard service...hope they remember to bring tents..and that they aren't paper, too.....eww..

[john70t]

I want to be stuffed and shellac'd and put on the front porch in an inconvenient pose.

[Flatbutt1]

When my Father passed away I tried to defer on having him embalmed since he requested cremation. But I was told that it wasn't optional in NYS, the law requires the dead to be embalmed within 24 hours.

[john70t]

Good money in that undertaking/coffin racket....since it's required by law.