The Centre for Natural Burial

By Graeme Stemp-Morlock, Green Living Magazine

It’s one of the biggest and most expensive decisions you will ever make in your life: your funeral. When a loved one passes away, many things are considered in a short time. Increasingly the environment is one of those things.

A worldwide movement for green burial is gaining momentum in Canada. While you can’t plant your loved one under a tree in a nature park yet, there are options that exist when a nature lover returns to the earth.

Green caskets
One of the greenest funeral homes in Ontario is Erb & Good Family Funeral Home in Waterloo, Ontario. Rob Wintonyk, Funeral Director and General Manager for Erb & Good, explained that the desire for eco-friendly options came out of the desire of David Erb, one of the funeral homes owners, to bring his green lifestyle to his business.

Starting two years ago, the funeral home began to offer EnviroCaskets from Northern Caskets Ltd. in Lindsay, Ontario. “The casket is made with no varathanes, no metals or hinges, no dyes or chemicals in the fabric interior, and it is made of sustainably harvested poplar wood,” said Wintonyk.

Sustainable wood, traditional methods
Poplar trees are “weed wood” according to Wintonyk because they mature in only 20-30 years, making them quick to reforest an area. The EnviroCaskets use traditional woodworking methods from previous centuries, such as wooden dowels with non-chemical glues to join corners instead of nails or screws. Northern Caskets has even patented some of the techniques used to create fully moveable handles and doors.

Simplicity
Viewing the EnviroCaskets, one is struck by their simple elegance. They don’t have the dark, polished look of a cherry casket, but they have lots of rustic, natural (and price) appeal.

Another thing that Erb & Good is trying out is using a greener, iodine embalming fluid from the U.K. made by AARDBalm as opposed to the carcinogenic formaldehyde. Wintonyk does caution though that the iodine mixture does not preserve quite as well as the formaldehyde currently, but there is testing being done in some medical colleges to improve the formulation.

Green eternity
Surprisingly, the cemetery is one area of the funeral industry that has always had a long-term approach to nature and business. Federal law stipulates that cemeteries must invest large amounts of money to ensure the funds for maintenance and restoration work necessary for future decades.

* Forever green
* An equitable bouquet
* Affordable green gifts for Mom
* Gives thanks with a green centrepiece

“Cemeteries think 100 years ahead, not just five or ten,” said Wintonyk. “After all, a cemetery is forever.”

Organic resting places
Pesticide use, local plants, and the ability to embrace a natural setting are all things to consider when looking for a final resting place. Williamsburg Cemetery in Kitchener, for instance, has worked very hard to integrate nature with families through the landscaping of ponds, rivers and natural tree growth.

The final area that needs to be considered for a green funeral is the monument marking the person’s final resting place. There are a great variety of options and prices available for stone markers, but perhaps consider local varieties of stone that don’t have to be flown or trucked from as far.

Outlook for the future
Looking to the future Wintonyk predicts that some cemeteries will begin to offer a portion of their grounds as green burial sites if the green trend continues. Perhaps, hybrid technology hearses and solar powered church services won’t be that far off.

Finally, when making funeral arrangements it is best to make plans for the environment beforehand. “We are open to any suggestion and try to help people realize their final wishes,” said Wintonyk. “But, when time is of the essence, it can be hard to find everything a family wants.”

Research needed
So, if you wish to have a small eco-footprint in your passing, do some homework beforehand.

Finding a supplier of 100 percent post-consumer recycled paper for bulletins or local organic flowers can save families a lot of stress, and help make your final return to nature as eco-friendly as possible.

Read our article Forever Green or contact the Natural Burial Society for more information.