Give Life Back to the Earth through Natural Burial
Just as we can choose to practice environmentally friendly practices while living, we can use these same ideas after death. Through natural burial, we can choose a method of burial that allows our decomposing body to be used as a conservation tool.
The body decays faster if natural decomposition is allowed. Upon death, tissues and cells immediately begin to die. The intestines are packed with millions of micro-organisms that the body keeps in check while alive.
After death, these micro-organisms begin to eat the intestines, then other internal organs. Digestive enzymes and enzymes in individual cells also begin to break down cells. Blowflies, houseflies and other insects begin to move into the body and lay eggs.
As the body decays, odor and color changes occur, while gas buildup causes bloating and forces liquids out of the body. After the gas escapes through a ruptured body cavity, the body darkens even further and insect activity increases.
These insects consume the remaining soft-tissue in the body. In the final step of human decomposition, the skeletal remains break down.
The recycling of the body allows the carbon cycle to continue. These organic compounds from the decomposing human body get recycled as new animal, marine, plant or human life.
With traditional funeral practices, decomposition is slowed. Embalming pumps the body full of toxic chemicals such as formaldehyde, a carcinogenic chemical.
Caskets are sealed to further slow down decomposition and they contribute thousands of tons of steel, cement and metal to grave sites each year.
As the body decomposes through traditional burial methods, chemicals from the embalming process and the coffin leach out, polluting fertile soil and can end up in drinking water.
With a natural or green burial, the body is allowed to naturally decompose and no chemicals are used to prepare the body.
Bodies are placed in biodegradable coffins or funeral shrouds made from natural materials such as silk and cotton.
These green burial methods will not release harmful chemical by-products into the environment.