Traditional Burial, Cremation, or…

Guest article by Bhakti Watts, End of Life Doula

It has not been that long since the choice for what to do with your body after you’re finished with it was simple: traditional burial or cremation. Just recently the number of choices in Washington has expanded greatly. A person’s choices now include natural burial, aquamation, and recomposing. Let’s take a look what at each of these choices involves.

There are two places in Washington that offer the natural burial option. One is Moles Farewell Tributes and Crematory in Ferndale, and the other is White Eagle Natural Burial Ground in southeastern Washington. What makes a burial natural is that there is no cement vault and no casket. Instead, the body is wrapped in a shroud or placed in a biodegradable container such as a basket. Earth-friendly excavation is used, and the body is at a depth where there is no odor and animals do not try to dig there. You can visit either burial ground in advance of the death, and there are prepaid plans to purchase a site. The cost ranges from about $3250 to $6000. This compares with about $3640 for a low-end traditional burial.

Aquamation (also known as Alkaline Hydrolysis) is a water-based process. “It is an eco-friendly alternative to traditional flame-based cremation. Aquamation is a gentle and respectful process that uses water instead of fire. The water-based process uses a solution of 95% water and 5% alkali (a combination of sodium and potassium hydroxide). At the end of the process, the chemical has been completely consumed, neutralized, and no longer remains in the water solution.” (molesfarewelltributes.com) I could not have described it better myself. At the end of the process the bones are a powder not that different from traditional cremains. This process is preferable to cremation from an environmental standpoint because it is energy efficient, and does not contribute to air pollution. This process can be arranged for prior to one’s death and ranges in cost from $1400-$3000, compared to $3500 for a traditional cremation.

Recomposing (human composting) operates on the same principle as composting for one’s garden. The body is place in a container filled with organic material and covered with more organic material. Recomposing requires 1/8 the energy of conventional burial or cremation. Each body recomposed creates one cubic yard of nutrient-rich soil amendment. The soil amendment may be used by the family, or can be donated to a nonprofit land trust. The price for recomposing one’s body is $5500 at this time. If a person orders in advance, this price will be honored regardless of when they need to use the service. This is a new offering in Washington, and is available from Recompose.

For people looking for low-cost alternatives to traditional funeral services, there is a non-profit called People’s Memorial, which is dedicated to protecting an individual’s right to choose meaningful, dignified, and affordable after-death arrangements. There is also a company that you should know about if you are researching prices, called Elemental Cremation and Burial.

As you can see, there are way more options available to us than ever before when it comes to what to do with our bodies when we are finished with them. It could even be considered a fun and interesting topic to explore!

Bhakti Watts, End of Life Doula, facilitates lifelong depth, meaning, and connection. Her services include Family Visits/Caregiver Support, Quality of Life Facilitation, Vigil, Memorial & Transition Ceremonies, and Grief & Ritual Support. Her website is bhaktiwatts.com.