Green Cemeteries/Natural Burial Grounds offer many benefits:• Environmentally friendly, low impact burials.
• Land stewardship and restoration planning.
• Sustainable burial methods.
• Restrictions to keep the grounds exclusively as green cemetery.
• Some use naturally flat stones or native trees used for grave
markers with GIS coordinates recorded. Others have no grave-markers.
• Oftentimes, it is purely forest and meadows, where loved ones
can find solace in the natural environment.
Enriches Soil. Adds organic material, Improves fertility and
productivity. Suppresses plant diseases, discourages insects, increases
water retention, inoculates soil with beneficial microorganisms, reduces
or eliminates fertilizer needs, moderates soil temperature.
Prevents Pollution. Reduces methane production in landfills, reduces or eliminates organic garbage, reduces or eliminates sewage.
Fights Existing Pollution. Degrades toxic chemicals, binds heavy metals, cleans contaminated air, cleans stormwater runoff.
Aids in reforestation, helps restore wildlife habitats, helps reclaim mined lands, helps restore damaged wetlands, helps prevent erosion on flood plains.
Destroys Pathogens. Can destroy human disease organisms, plant pathogens, and livestock pathogens.
Eliminates waste disposal costs. Reduces the need for water, fertilizers, and pesticides. Extends landfill life by diverting materials and is a less costly bioremediation technique.
Green burial incarnates the pure nature of allowing the body to return naturally to the earth. When one opts for a natural green burial, he or she is contributing to the preservation of the land. Green burials are a practical alternative to both traditional burials and cremation.
There is either no embalming or embalming with non-toxic, formaldehyde-free fluids, no headstones and no grave liners. (Grave liners are concrete boxes that line the inside of the grave, like an open-ended box with no lid, used to keep regular cemeteries flat for grass to be mowed easily). The container that holds the body (coffin, casket, or shroud) must be 100% biodegradable.
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