There is a process, but it is legal in 8 states now. It is more expensive than being burnt, but less than being buried.
I personally think that this is a great option. I wish it was less costly because many folks pick cremation as the less expensive option, but I will be looking into it for us.
What do you guys think? The comments in the articles I’ve seen are pretty mixed.
I don’t think so. For me.
Altho’ “the worms go in, the worms go out” now makes more sense.
Is anyone else thinking about the show “Six Feet Under” now?
As a moral issue, I’m all in favor - if the science and practical considerations line up. I would not want to condone anything that promotes disease, trauma, or chaos/problems of any kind.
Death and decomposition are natural processes. To the extent that they can be incorporated (heh, no pun intended) into daily life, so much the better. I’d happily allow my dead body to be transferred, burned, buried, processed, preserved, studied, or whatever - the most minimally harmful, traumatic, method that is most beneficial to the world at large is what I want.
I want my body to be launched from a trebuchet in a Punkin Chunkin type contest.
I like this approach as I do not want to take up some piece of real estate for eternity, and would prefer a more environmentally friendly way to have my remains disposed of than cremation. I’d also prefer they had called it the “Pushing up Daisies” bill.
I think it’s great. But I’ve already made it known that I want what’s left of me to go to the Maryland Anatomy Board for research. Their procedure, after they’re done doing whatever they do with the body, is to cremate the remains and return them to the family. But if they offered the composting option, I’d be all over it. Once I’m done with my physical self, I’d like it to be as useful as possible.
What kind of fees and guidelines do they offer? I know in PA apparently there’s just the transportation cost. No idea what that might run, but it looks interesting.
I wonder why that is. Two of my gf’s horses are buried on our property. For the most recent the excavator took about an hour to dig the huge hole, put the horse in, and then refill and level the area. The excavator was local and IIRC he charged $150. My gf gave him $200 as a thank you for Sunday work.
It looks like they actually put you in some kind of fast composting container, not just bury you and wait for you to degrade. I assume that takes a lot more than 3 months to go from fresh body to topsoil.
Damn, I’d prefer the local excavator dropping me into the hole.
I think it’s great.
I’ve always thought that conventional burials were an environmental disaster - fill people with preservatives and then put them in the ground where they can become one with our drinking water.
I love the idea. My dad’s burial was called a “green burial”. He was just wrapped in a shroud and put straight into the ground so he could decompose naturally. Though I do wish that I could have his skull as he’s surely fully decomposed by now.
Shovels are cheap.
But grave robbing is frowned upon, alas. He’s in a graveyard that has a natural, green burial section. If he was in the backyard you can bet I’d be getting that skull. I have a bit of a skull collection - hummingbird, budgies, bat, mouse.
Add a casket made of naturally decomposing wood, and you’ve got a traditional Jewish burial.
Did you know there are now seven body farms in the United States? I’d be happy to donate my carcass to one of them.
If that weren’t possible I’d like to become compost. Failing that, cremation with ashes dumped in Lake Winnipesaukee.
well, depends on your definition of useful:
However, Jill was stunned to learn her husband’s body was in fact sold to the Department of Defence after initially being taken to the Biological Research Center in Arizona, US.
Jill said: “They told me specifically that my husband had been used as a crash test dummy in a simulated Humvee explosion.”
The grieving wife found out her husband’s body was sold by Stephen Gore, founder of the now-closed Phoenix body donation facility.
His company sold Steve’s body without Jill’s consent, along with thousand’s of others, and was used to conduct military and ballistics tests which resulted in “the complete mutilation and desecration of the donor’s body.”
Why do modern humans have so much trouble with this?
I’m like @kayaker, the less intrusion the better I like. Just dump me in a hole. Far from the house as you’re comfortable with.
Bodies of creatures and humans have been decomposing on the earth since something crawled out of the primordial sludge.
You’re probably standing on it now.
Gives one pause to mud fighting, mud baths, mud pies and mud facials, picnics, and even rolling down a hill for giggles. Doesn’t it?
the compost the body is faster than in the ground, and no bugs!
your survivors could get the soil or donate it to parks.
Inside one of the world’s first human composting facilities (theverge.com)