Green burials: biodegradable coffins and even lighter stuff

September 20, 2009 · Posted by in G.I.Y. 

cemetery-flower

A flower in a cemetery | Flickr user zevotron

Fort Collins always gives Boulder a run for its money on being the leader in certain green issues, and it looks like some of its residents will continue to do so even in death — green burials are gaining acceptance once more:

The City Council on Tuesday voted unanimously to allow a portion of Roselawn Cemetery to accept bodies that would not be embalmed and placed only in a shroud or biodegradable casket.

The area will be called the Garden of Harmony and will get little tending. It will be watered for only the first year of operation and reseeded in native grasses and wildflowers. “It will be very simple,” Carpenter said.

Fort Collins is leading the way in green burials, at least on the Front Range, said Karen van Vuuren, executive director of the Boulder nonprofit Natural Transitions.

This story brings up one of the two most common themes in “the greening of x:” we find that at least as often as technology can help us have less negative impact on the environment, (1) looking back at the way our grandparents did things and (2) figuring out how to save money will lead to saving the environment.

According to the Centre for Natural Burial, more green burials would save an awful lot of chemicals from going into the ground:

“Each year, Americans bury nearly a million gallons of chemical embalming fluid along with their dead,” the group reports. “In every ten acres of cemetery land, we entomb nearly a thousand tons of casket steel, around 20,000 tons of concrete for vaults, and enough casket wood to build more than 40 homes. Modern cemetery upkeep also degrades the land, through intensive pesticide and fertilizer usage.”

Of course, these are pretty heavy matters for any family dealing with loss, and a large part of a green burial is the statement it makes, so there’s a lot to think about — and it’s not going to be for everybody. Here’s a brief description, via @Gaiam:

A “Green” burial will typically ban the use of embalming fluids (or at least require alternatives), vaults, conventional markers, and metal caskets. Green burial sites are often located in meadows and wooded areas that do not require constant maintenance, and the clear-cutting of trees. A “Tree Burial” is one type of green burial in which the body is laid to rest under a newly planted tree.

@elephantjournal wrote earlier this year about a newer variety — with its own pros and cons — burial in a coral reef.

Tags: no tags

Tip Jar

Like what we're doing? Got a spare sawbuck? Help us pay for site maintenance and reporting and we'll think happy thoughts about you sometimes. $100 gets you a personal, paperless thank-you video from Dave and Laura! $500 gets you... five personal, paperless thank-you videos from Dave and Laura and a tote bag!

One Response to “Green burials: biodegradable coffins and even lighter stuff”

  1. Tweets that mention Green burials: biodegradable coffins and even lighter stuff | BigGreenBoulder Boulder, CO : BigGreenBoulder -- Topsy.com on September 20th, 2009 10:58 am

    [...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by thegreengod and Jordan. Jordan said: Green burials: biodegradable coffins and even lighter stuff …: Of course, these are pretty heavy matters for a.. http://bit.ly/162Zkc [...]