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.
"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.
Update: Dearly departed encouraged to do their bit on global warming
It is widely accepted that the battle to reduce Britain’s carbon emissions will require bold decisions from government, and no little sacrifice by British citizens.
In the pursuit of this greater good, however, a local authority on the edge of Greater Manchester has noted that one group of Britons are failing to do their bit.
The dead in the jurisdiction of Tameside Council are simply not pulling their weight. The council has now arrived at a rather daring solution.
2 comments:
Ashes to ashes, dust to dust, humans to earth - it actually makes wonderful sense. Hey whether we like it or not, nature's gonna have its way with us anyway. Why make biological breakdown more difficult than it has to be? I'd just rather wait a few more years - no more than a few - before I act on this personally. :-)
The modern concept of natural burial began in the UK in 1993 and has since spread across the globe. According the Centre for Natural Burial, http://naturalburial.coop there are now several hundred natural burial grounds in the United Kingdom and half a dozen sites across the USA, with others planned in Canada, New Zealand, South Africa and even China.
The Centre for Natural Burial provides comprehensive resources and detailed information about natural burial sites around the world.
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