One of the nation's oldest cemeteries is turning to one of the newest forms of burial: human composting. The Wall Street Journal reports that Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn is teaming with the German company Meine Erde (My Earth) to introduce "natural organic reduction." The process will sound familiar to those acquainted with green burials:
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"The dead are placed in a sealed vessel bedded with clover, hay and straw and equipped to regulate airflow, temperature and moisture. Then nature takes its course. Microbes break down everything but bones, which are ground into the final compost mix."
The cemetery is starting with 18 vessels in the hope of solving a problem confronting cemeteries across the US: It's running out of space. The Journal story takes an in-depth look at the national issue, which will only intensify as baby boomers age and die. Consider that 3 million Americans die each year, a figure expected to hit 4 million over the next two decades. In response, 14 states currently allow human composting, starting with Washington in 2019, and a small cluster of companies has emerged, including Recompose and Return Home near Seattle.
The push has met resistance from funeral-home groups and the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, though supporters counter that objections are driven as much by financial interests as by theology or science. One unmoving fact is the looming numbers on deaths. "We will one day come to a time when we won't have the capacity for traditional burials," says Green-Wood Cemetery president Meera Joshi. "But that doesn't mean we have to close our doors." Read the full story. Or read a piece questioning whether green burials work as well as advertised.
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