Both living and dead benefit from green burials

What happens after we die? Though morbid, the question is well worth asking, because at some point we all will die. Our bodies will break down and return to the earth. The dead will come back to haunt us, not only emotionally, but physically as well. Spirituality and zombies aside, we leave behind physical remains that families, morticians and mother nature will have to deal with. Will chemicals seep from our coffins into the soil? Will toxins in our ashes contaminate sea? Will trees be planted in our names instead of headstones? Those who strive to lead a green life might consider a green death, and decide to make more environmentally friendly funeral arrangements.

The laws and rights concerning the dead vary from area to area. In the United States, some states require a funeral director or mortician to assist with services. In other countries, and throughout history, loved ones freely arrange care for the deceased themselves. A traditional burial is never the only option. You might choose cremation, or donate your body to science. An increasing number of people are turning to natural burials - a form of interment that doesn't harm the environment. These burials often swap graves for gardens and allow the body to decompose as plants, fungi and other life forms absorb their remains.

Embalming is not necessary. The process uses carcinogenic preservatives such as formaldehyde to arrest the rate of decomposition and make the deceased appear more life-like during open casket services. Once buried, these embalming fluids can escape the casket and contaminate ground water. If the deceased needs to be preserved until the funeral, consider refrigeration. Cold storage will also slow the rate of decomposition. Most funeral homes should have a cold room for this purpose. Without embalming, the body will naturally begin to decompose and appear more dead than alive during funeral services. While some find this idea unnerving, others find the imitation of life in the dead equally unnerving.

Less hazardous, biodegradable embalming fluids are becoming popular and offer a solution to those who want to balance preservation of the body with preservation of the environment. Champion's product, Enigma, claims non-toxic ingredients such as clove oil and cinnamon. It earned approval from the Green Burial Council (GBC), which is an independent nonprofit organization devoted to eco-friendly end-of-life care. The GBC only endorses products that contain a full disclosure of ingredients, no harmful chemicals and no chemicals that eventually evolve into harmful chemicals.

According to the GBC, green burial uses less energy and creates less waste than conventional burial. It can also serve as a catalyst for ecological restoration and land conservation. It does not involve embalming with hazardous chemicals, metal caskets or concrete burial vaults. The manufacturing and transporting of vaults uses a tremendous amount of energy and causes enormous carbon emission, explains the organization. Coffins themselves can contain toxic metals like lead, laminate coatings and wood that has not come from sustainable resources.

Cremation is sometimes considered the better option when choosing between burial and ashes because it's thought that ashes will free up valuable space. Yet cremation requires a large amount of energy in the form of gas and electricity - the equivalent of a 500 mile car trip, according to the Natural Death Centre in London. Burning the dead also releases pollutants, such as mercury vapor from dental fillings, into the atmosphere. "Because of this, crematoriums have had to comply with increasingly strict legislation on their emissions, and have added sophisticated but expensive filters," states the Natural Death Centre. "This, coupled with the instability of international oil prices, has seen the cost to the public recently soar and the trend looks likely to continue." Cremation can be costly and, if performed without proper filters, more damaging than many people realize.

Some seek to make burials more intimate and individual. In the United Kingdom, designer Hazel Selina found inspiration in the natural cycle of seeds and designed a coffin made entirely from paper, with a finishing made of recycled silk and mulberry leaves. The Ecopod is nontoxic, can be burned and biodegrades in the ground. The paper comes from curbside-collected, post-consumer newspapers, which are converted into paper clay through a dough machine. Specially designed straps allow funeral attendants of different heights and strengths to carry the deceased, which means family and friends of all ages can participate. The designers chose bright colors as a way to break free from the typically somber environment of a funeral, to reinforce the idea that we have not reached the end, but are moving toward a new beginning.

Just as in life, each person is unique in their passing. There are many ways to celebrate, scatter or inter the memory of a loved one, while honoring the simple truth that we are all connected through the earth. After working hard to preserve the environment we're born into, why not choose a greener way to leave it? It would be a bitter parting gift to contaminate the community groundwater with the lead and zinc in your coffin.