Is Resomation the Right Choice for You?

Angela, 77, asked her two children and her five grandchildren to meet at her home on a Sunday afternoon. After exchanging family news, she explained to them that she wanted to pre-plan her funeral and had reached the conclusion that in the interest of going green, she wanted to be cremated. Her 21-year-old grandson surprised her by stating that the "greenest" burial around wasn't cremation, but a process known as resomation.

What is Resomation?

It's a body disposal process designed to be an environmentally friendly alternative to cremation, according to Resomation Ltd. While widely discussed in Europe - especially in the United Kingdom - the process is legal in only six states in the United States thus far. They include Colorado, Florida, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota and Oregon. Resomation is one current way to dispose of bodies donated for medical study.

GroovyGreen indicates that resomation costs around $600, a fraction of the cost of a traditional burial. Around 1,000 people in the U.S. have chosen this means of dealing with their remains.

The process comes with its share of controversy. Many people simply find the idea of having their body dissolved after death repulsive. Some find that when they bring up the idea of choosing resomation as an alternative to a standard burial, it literally divides their family. They never get a chance to explain the advantages.

How It Works

The Mother Nature Network reports that resomation uses an alkaline hydrolysis process to dissolve a body into two components, a liquid and a powdery white substance. Unlike cremation, it doesn't release nitrogen oxide, carbon monoxide and sulfur dioxide into the earth's atmosphere. Resomation is considered a zero-emission process.

The body of the deceased is placed in a bag, then lowered into a unit known as a Resomator. Technicians fill the unit with water and potassium hydroxide, then heat the mixture to about 160 degrees C. No burning is involved in the process. The residual substances are free of DNA. The powder left behind is a form of bio-ash can be returned to relatives as ashes are after cremation.

Unlike resomation, both embalming and cremation are considered highly toxic. As a matter of fact, more than 800,000 gallons of embalming fluid, most of them full of formaldehyde, get disposed of into the earth each year. According to the Mother Nature Network, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) considers formaldehyde a probable carcinogen.

What About a Funeral?

Choosing resomation instead of a traditional burial doesn't affect having a funeral or viewing the deceased's remains. The body can remain in a traditional casket during a funeral or memorial service.

Afterward, since it's impossible to resomate a wooden coffin, the body is moved moved to a sealed silk coffin considered environmentally friendly. The silk coffin with the body inside it goes through the resomation process. The funeral therefore resembles one that precedes a cremation.

For many individuals attuned to environmental issues, resomation initially sounds appealing. For others, however, there is such a thing as going too green when it comes to death. The first step in any inquiry about the process is to find out if the state where the funeral would be held permits this type of disposal of remains. The easiest way to get this information is to contact a local funeral home.

Sources:

http://www.resomation.com/index_files/Page347.htm

http://www.groovygreen.com/groove/?p=1706

http://www.mnn.com/lifestyle/responsible-living/stories/resomation-may-be-the-greenest-way-to-dispose-of-bodies