How do you feel about a ‘green’ burial? One company is setting itself up to open the very first human composting site by 2021, which will offer fully green burials for those especially concerned about climate change.
Here’s the question: how much do you love the environment, and would you consider this method of burial to help save the planet?
Seattle-based company Recompose is planning to open their first funeral home in 2021 which will actually use composting methods to handle human remains, instead of a traditional burial or cremation service.
Recompose got the go-ahead from Washington State this month, which involved them jumping through a lot of hoops. This makes Washington the very first state to allow natural organic reduction of human remains.
The first facility is set to be able to handle up to 75 remains at one time and can turn the deceased into approximately one cubic yard of soil in as little as 30 days.
It will also use about one-eighth of the energy that a traditional cremation uses, and save as much as a metric ton of carbon dioxide from being produced. That’s a big difference, and it has a lot of promise.
Recompose is looking to focus on major cities that do not have space or the ability to handle traditional burials. Cities like Seattle, New York, and LA all have limited space. Finding a reasonable burial plot is almost impossible – but composting? That’s a real solution.
They are also hoping to ‘cash in’ on the trend of going green and targeting those looking to reduce their carbon footprint overall. Most people don’t consider the impact on the environment we have after we pass away, but it does make a big difference.
Recompose has shared its plans for decomposition, and it’s… interesting. Apparently, they plan on putting the human remains in a hexagon tube and covering them with materials that encourage decomposition, like hay, woodchips, and alfalfa.
The temperature inside the tube is heavily regulated, and the airflow is monitored. Essentially, it is creating a perfect environment for decomposition, which is why the process can happen so fast. It will take between four and seven weeks for full decomposition to happen.
The deceased can then be returned to the family, or donated to a land soil project that provides nutrients to Bell Mountain.
