Going Green, Even in Death: Eco-Friendly Burials a New Trend

Saturday, 03 January 2009 12:41 Written by  Kenshata Harris

Mark Harris wants to be a Philadelphia tree once he dies. He has everything prepared from his clothing, burial site, and even biodegradable coffin.

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“I want my body to rejoin the soil and return to a natural state in a plain pine box,” says Harris, environmental journalist and author of “Grave Matters: A Journey through the Modern Funeral Industry to a Natural Way of Burial.”

More people are moving toward the new trend of eco-friendly or “natural” burials since last year. According to a 2007 AARP survey, 21 percent reported that they would be very interested or interested in a burial that is more environmentally friendly than the traditional burial that involves embalming.

But Harris says the interest has doubled in the past year. He cites a Kates-Boylston survey that found 43 percent of Americans were now interested in green burial.

These burials are the opposite of traditional burials, where the corpse is embalmed with formaldehyde and then placed in a steel or wooden casket for viewing. After the funeral, the casket is lowered into a concrete vault and buried.

Green burials involve no embalming, no plastic-coated caskets or cement vaults and no chemical lawn treatments. Once underground and covered by tons of dirt, there is no opportunity for the casket to become a mini-landfill of non-biodegradable waste.

“Over time, the typical 10-acre swatch of cemetery ground, for example, contains enough coffin wood to construct more than 40 houses, nearly 1,000 tons of casket steel and another 20,000 tons of vault concrete,” Harris says. “Add to that a volume of toxic formalin nearly sufficient to fill a small backyard swimming pool and untold gallons of pesticide and weed killer used to keep the cemetery grounds preternaturally green.”    

Jennifer Johnson, burial coordinator of GreenSprings Natural Cemetery in Newfield, N.Y says there’s an increased interest in green burials.

“We receive five to six calls a week for green burials and we have one burial per month on average,” Johnson says. “We also get about seven inquiries through email weekly on average.”

Ashes to ashes, from dust to dust, cremations were considered eco-friendly before “natural” burials. It was harmless compared to graveyard burials, but the use of fossil fuels has brought up concerns.

According to Green Burial Council, a non-profit organization in Santa Fe, NM, aims toward encouraging people to consider sustainable after death rituals, cremation uses far fewer resources than almost any other disposition option but it also has an environmental impact and carbon footprint.

“It creates carbon emissions that contribute to global warming,” says Joe Sehee, executive director and founder of Green Burial Council.

Eco-friendly burials can be traced back to Britain. The natural burial movement began in Britain in the early 1990s, and now there are more than 200 sites in the United Kingdom. Currently, there are five in the United States where your body can be returned to nature.    

“The goal then and now is the same: to allow the body at death to rejoin the elements it sprang from, to use what remains of a life to regenerate new life, to return dust to dust,” says Harris.

“Natural” caskets options range from softwoods such as, pine, wicker, shroud cloths, bamboo, cardboards, willow, sea grass, and even handcrafted.  Prices range from $100 for a simple cardboard box and up to more than $3,000 for a handcrafted, hand-painted.

Eco-friendly burials are less costly than traditional burials. According to the National Funeral Directors Association, the average cost of a traditional funeral is $7,500 plus cemetery costs. Natural burials can cost up to $4,000.

National Funeral Director’s Association public relations manager, Jessica Koth, says that funeral homes generate on an average of $11 billion in revenue. It doesn’t stop here because figures are expected to increase with today’s baby boomers.

“They are realizing that they want to make their funeral unique and “green” burials are the way to do it,” says Koth.

The eco-friendly burial may be the new trend, but funeral director Mike Simkins of Simkins Funeral Home in Morton Grove says that he hasn’t received any requests for “green” burials.

“We are in an area that prefers traditional burials,” says Simkins. “People are not knowledgeable about green burials including myself. I think that until more cemeteries and suppliers hear about this, then we can carry out the “green” requirements.”

Jane Zawadowski, resident of Oak Park, IL, wants to start a green cemetery. The pursuit of a green cemetery in Illinois began in May 2008, when Zawadowski and her family decided to create a will and trust.  With a moan, Jane pulled out an article she had saved for years –- on funerals at home. She never read the article because talking about death can cause a panic attack in everyone.  After reading the article, Jane came to the conclusion that a home visitation and all other natural things for her after death were completely consistent with her personality.

“I view a green cemetery as supporting the joyful reclaiming of the need for a connection with land and with others.” says Zawadowski. “I envision that people will picnic on this land, learn about native species, habitat restoration and organic food production.  People will have a connection with this land, visiting this particular place over and over again during life, eventually to reside here in a…more permanent fashion.”

Jane is currently educating possible partners about her desire, about what green cemeteries are, and engaging in conversations with many allies and interested parties.  

“To be clear, this effort is a combination of a business venture but also a spiritual quest,” says Zawadowski. “I am driven by the need to create transformation, enable change, make art, and educate and connect community.”

The cemetery will be more than a sacred place, but a place for all types of gatherings and ceremonial events.

“Gatherings such as weddings, family reunions, camping and picnicking are examples of other uses of the land,” says Zawadowski. “There will be an environmentally-friendly gathering space adjoining a kitchen space.”

Jane also says that there will be overnight accommodations consisting of tent-camping sites.

“Nearby towns with lodging will be identified; interested visitors will receive relevant lodge information,” says Zawadowski.  “Bathrooms will involve a composting mechanism.”

Back in Pennsylvania, Mark Harris, 48, waits patiently for a natural cemetery to come in place. A group called A Natural Undertaking has plans to start a natural cemetery. Harris wants to make it easier for loved ones to bury him and preserve land for others to enjoy.

“I want to be buried in a natural environment to continue the natural cycle of life,” says Harris.

 

Photography by Billy Montgomery.

Kenshata Harris

Kenshata Harris

Kenshata Harris is a freelance writer and senior majoring in Magazine journalism at Columbia College Chicago. In addition to writing for GMO, she also interned at StreetWise, Chicago's homeless magazine, and is the IntenseCity Editor of her college magazine ECHO.

She can be contacted at Editor@glossmagazineonline.com