I’m sure most of you are familiar with your local, traditional funeral home, offering what we have always known as the only two options for death care: cremation and burial. A green funeral home is one that focuses on environmental sustainability in all aspects of its operations, from the way they source materials, to the way it disposes of waste, to the services they offer. There are many benefits to choosing a green funeral home. In this article, we will cover some of the main reasons eco-friendly death care is beneficial and can help transform how we deal with death, while continuing the cycle of life after death.
Top 4 Benefits of Green/Eco-Friendly Death Care and Choosing a Green Funeral Home
First, it is clear that green funeral homes have a focus on bettering our planet. They have a focus on sustainability, reducing their carbon footprint, and making the world a better place for future generations. At Return Home, our entire company culture is focused on sustainability, ethical death care, transparency, and always pushing ourselves to do better for the families we care for and the planet that houses us. We care for everyone the same way we would care for our own family members.
Second, green funeral homes offer more options for green death care. One growing green death care option is Terramation, also known as human composting, which uses only alfalfa, straw, and sawdust to gently transform the human body into nutrient-rich, life-giving soil. This process is an environmentally friendly alternative to traditional cremation, which uses fuel and heat to incinerate the body which in turn releases greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere. Terramation is also much more sustainable than traditional burial by ending the need for a casket and the need for a plot of land at a cemetery. Terramation also eliminates embalming, which uses chemicals like formaldehyde to preserve the body that drastically slows its natural decomposition process. Aquamation is another green death care alternative to cremation that uses alkaline chemicals and water to essentially pressurize and dissolve the body into bare bone, much like cremation, but without the need for fossil fuels. Although the Aquamation process is much more accelerated than Terramation and does not directly promote new life, it still provides an alternative to cremation that reduces the environmental impact of the death care industry.
Third, green funeral homes are often less expensive than traditional funeral homes. This is because they don’t have to use as many resources that are often used by producing a casket or encapsulating a plot of land in a cemetery. We at Return Home believe it is essential that everyone have access to green death care options, and even offer interest free funeral pre-planning services to allow families and individuals assurance and peace of mind by planning their funeral ahead of time.
Finally, green funeral homes are helping to change the way we think about death. They offer a more sustainable and environmentally friendly alternative to traditional funeral homes and death care, and even allow new life to grow after death. We hope that this is the future of all death care; really returning to our roots.
Choosing a green funeral home is a great way to support environmental sustainability and is a great way to reduce your environmental footprint, leaving a legacy of sustainability and promoting the growth of new life after death. To discover more about green funeral services, please visit our website.
