# Can I be buried green now?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-be-buried-green-now/592018>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [August 9, 2011, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-be-buried-green-now/592018 "2011-08-09T01:36:05Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Mewl\_Dear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Mewl\_Dear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mewl_Dear)\
**Post date:** [August 9, 2011, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-be-buried-green-now/592018/1 "2011-08-09T01:36:05Z")

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For years I have sworn that the only way I would be buried was feet first with an acorn on my head. Used for fertilizer.  
Does the new green world make this more likely?

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**Author:** ![postcards](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8e8cbc/32.png) [@postcards](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/postcards)\
**Post date:** [August 9, 2011, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-be-buried-green-now/592018/2 "2011-08-09T01:47:49Z")

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[Plenty of options](http://www.google.com/search?q=green+burial&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a)

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**Author:** ![WarmNPrickly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d78d45/32.png) [@WarmNPrickly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WarmNPrickly)\
**Post date:** [August 9, 2011, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-be-buried-green-now/592018/3 "2011-08-09T02:01:16Z")

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I’m waiting for a company to make “personalized” biofuels.

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**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\
**Post date:** [August 9, 2011, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-be-buried-green-now/592018/4 "2011-08-09T02:16:22Z")

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As with all legal questions, it depends on where you are. What country, and if the US, what state?

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**Author:** ![Girl\_From\_Mars](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3da27b/32.png) [@Girl\_From\_Mars](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Girl_From_Mars)\
**Post date:** [August 9, 2011, 11:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-be-buried-green-now/592018/5 "2011-08-09T11:34:35Z")

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Yep - depends on where you are. If I die in NZ I’ve got plans to be buried [here](http://www.ecofunerals.co.nz/ecofunerals.html).

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**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\
**Post date:** [August 9, 2011, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-be-buried-green-now/592018/6 "2011-08-09T14:05:36Z")

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I recently read about an interesting method of body disposal (in the book **[Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers](http://www.amazon.com/Stiff-Curious-Lives-Human-Cadavers/dp/0393324826/)** by Mary Roach). Essentially, the body is frozen by immersion in a vat of liquid nitrogen. Next, it is broken into small pieces by ultrasonic waves or mechanical vibration. Finally, the pieces are freeze-dried and used as compost for a memorial tree or shrub. The idea is gaining ground in Sweden; maybe it’ll be more widely available by the time you pass on.