Northern Virginia company touts back-to-nature cremations
Associated Press
A northern Virginia company is putting its own twist on the term “living memorial,” and giving the deceased a chance to rise again … in a way.
Start-up company EcoEternity is offering to plant cremated remains in a biodegradeable urn … or without any container at all … beside a mature tree.
The idea is the remains will be soaked up by the tree’s root system, allowing the deceased to gradually become one with the trees their remains are helping to make grow.
The Centreville-based company is 1 of several nationwide trying to stir interest in back-to-nature funerals. It is already popular in Canada, Europe and parts of Asia.
Much like in cemeterys, this eco-burial gives a family an opportunity to be laid to rest together, and neither option is cheap. EcoEternity’s price for leasing a tree starts at $4,500 and increases by species, location and age. But up to 15 family members and friends can choose to be buried over a period of 99 years under one mature tree.