By Andrew B. Hoffman
In my first article, I mentioned how more and more loved ones are honoring their deceased family with a simple, environmentally friendly process called a green burial.
Both traditional burial and cremation are very common methods of final disposition in our society but many have pointed out that both are not good for the environment and many more do not find personal value in these types of services. Traditional burial with embalming uses chemicals to.preserve the deceased but these chemicals are a carcinogen and can be dangerous to both the embalmer and possibly the environment. Also, there are many who don’t feel the need or want to be embalmed and want to return to the earth naturally. Some people are concerned about the use of land for cemetery space and are concerned about the carbon footprint left behind when a casket or vault is placed in the ground. In regards to cremation the amount of energy needed to cremate an individual is large but more importantly is the amount of particle’s that are created from a cremation which is quite numerous. It is because of these two facts that make cremation not environmentally friendly at all. Based on all of this Green Burial is becoming very favorable for those with environmental concerns and/or want a very simple method of disposition.
So, again Green Burial, also known as natural burial is a way of caring for the dead with minimal environmental impact that aids in the conservation of natural resources, reduction of carbon emissions, protection of worker health and the restoration and/or preservation of habitat. Green burial necessitates the use of non-toxic and biodegradable materials such wicker/bamboo caskets, linen and cotton cloths or shrouds.
Andrew B. Hoffman is a funeral director at Jeffries and Keates and Keates-Plum Funeral Homes and a twenty-two year veteran of the funeral industry.
