The Green Burial Guidebook
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Page 22, How squeamish are Americans about death? We are the country: Barry Sanders, Unsuspecting Souls: The Disappearance of the Human Being (Berkeley, CA: Counterpoint Press, 2009), 107.
Page 23, “The typical ten-acre swath of cemetery ground”: Mark Harris, Grave Matters (New York: Scribner, 2007), 38.
Page 23, Katrina Spade, founder of Recompose, writes: Katrina Spade, “How Your Death Affects Climate Change,” Huffington Post, December 3, 2014, last updated February 2, 2015, https://www.huffingtonpost.com/katrina-spade/how-your-death-affects-cl_b_6263152.html.
Page 23, To quantify these impacts with slightly different numbers: Mary Woodsen, “Why Choose Green Burial,” Greensprings Natural Cemetery, March 2007, http://www.naturalburial.org/why-choose-green-burial.
Page 24, “we bury enough embalming fluid to fill eight Olympic-sized”: Cheryl Corley, “Burials and Cemeteries Go Green,” NPR Radio, December 16, 2007, http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=17232879.
Page 24, According to a 2016 Time magazine report, only about 10 percent of people: Josh Sanborn, “Cremation Is Now Outpacing Traditional Burial in the U.S.”, Time, August 1, 2016, http://time.com/4425172/cremation-outpaces-burial-u-s.
Page 25, Typically, cremation ovens use fossil fuels, and they must maintain: Nina Rastogi, “The Green Hereafter,” Slate, February 17, 2009, http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/the_green_lantern/2009/02/the_green_hereafter.html.
Page 25, The United Nations estimates that crematoriums contribute: “Agriculture’s Greenhouse Gas Emissions on the Rise, Warns UN Agency,” UN News Centre, April 11, 2014, http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=47563#.WgCYAiMrInU.
Page 25, Cremation ashes are primarily tricalcium phosphate: Sarah Tarlow and Liv Nilsson Stutz, The Oxford Handbook of the Archaeology of Death & Burial (Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, 2013), 150.
Page 26, If you want to scatter cremains or bury them, follow the advice: Gail Rubin and Susan Fraser, Celebrating Life: How to Create Meaningful Memorial Services with Templates & Tips (March 2015), https://www.inthelighturns.com/Celebrating-Life-How-To-Create-Meaningful-Memorial-Services.pdf.
Chapter 2. Green Burial Practices: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow
Page 28, green burial “is a way for families to talk about resurrection”: Lauren Markoe, “Green Burials Reflect a Shift to Care for the Body and Soul,” Washington Post, January 23, 2014, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/religion/green-burials-reflect-a-shift-to-care-for-the-body-and-soul/2014/01/23/169a359a-8470-11e3-a273-6ffd9cf9f4ba_story.html.
Page 28, According to Maria Margiotta, “Before the development of chemical”: Maria Margiotta, “‘Green’ Burial in the Catholic Tradition,” Catholic Cemetery, July 2016, http://www.rcancem.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/JULY_Catholic-Cemetery-Magazine.pdf.
Page 28, Father Charles Morris — who oversees Mount Carmel Cemetery: Rich Heffern, “Lay Your Loved Ones to Rest the Natural Way,” National Catholic Reporter, April 21, 2009, https://www.ncronline.org/news/lay-your-loved-ones-rest-natural-way.
Page 29, According to the website Funeralwise, “Jewish funeral traditions require”: “Naturally Green Jewish Burial Rituals,” FuneralWise, https://www.funeralwise.com/customs/green_jewish.
Page 29, Traditional Islamic burial practice states that the deceased loved one: Clifton D. Bryant, Handbook of Death and Dying (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2003), 650–51.
Page 30, I had the honor to serve as funeral director for a Native American burial: This story is adapted from a previous publication: Elizabeth Fournier, “Sacred Medicine Wheel,” Naturally Savvy, April 12, 2012, http://naturallysavvy.com/live/sacred-medicine-wheel.
Page 31, If you visit the Philippines, head to the northern city of Sagada: “Hanging Coffins,” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanging_coffins.
Page 32, In the high mountains of Tibet, with hard ground and little wood: Seth Faison, “Lirong Journal; Tibetans, and Vultures, Keep Ancient Burial Rite,” New York Times, July 3, 1999, http://www.nytimes.com/1999/07/03/world/lirong-journal-tibetans-and-vultures-keep-ancient-burial-rite.html.
Page 32, Ken West, who was the bereavement services manager of the Carlisle: Cynthia Beal, “Sustainable Cemetery Management — Revitalizing Existing Cemeteries,” American Cemetery Magazine, March 2009, http://www.beatree.com/2009/05/sustainable-cemetery-management.html.
Page 32, In the United States, one of the first natural burial grounds: Chuck Hall, Green Circles: A Sustainable Journey from the Cradle to the Grave (Seattle: CreateSpace, 2013), 136.
Page 33, In 2012, the United Kingdom had more than 250 green burial sites: Cynthia Beal, “Natural Burial; the Ultimate Back-to-the-Land Movement,” Be a Tree: The Natural Burial Guide for Turning Yourself into a Forest, http://beatree.com.
Page 33, To quote the official website: “At a Death Cafe”: “What Is Death Cafe?” DeathCafe.com, http://deathcafe.com/what.
Page 34, As quoted in People magazine, Rory wrote that: Maria Mercedes Lara, “Joey Feek Dead: Rory Feek on Her Funeral,” People, March 13, 2016, http://people.com/country/joey-feek-dead-rory-feek-on-her-funeral.
Page 35, In 2010, British actress Lynn Redgrave’s body was laid to rest: “Vanessa Redgrave Says Final Goodbye to Sister Lynn as Family Gathers for Connecticut Funeral,” Daily Mail, May 8, 2010, http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1275324/Lynn-Redgrave-funeral-Vanessa-Liam-Neeson-mourners.html.
Page 35, According to reports on CNN, television legend Andy Griffith: “Andy Griffith Buried Shortly after Death, Source Says,” CNN, July 3, 2012, http://www.cnn.com/2012/07/03/us/north-carolina-griffith-burial/index.html.
Page 35, Civil rights leader and founder of the United Farm Workers (UFW): Frank Bardacke, “Cesar’s Ghost,” The Nation, January 21, 2006, https://www.thenation.com/article/cesars-ghost.
Page 36, “Ancient Vikings lit funeral pyres...day before the ceremony”: Ivan Moreno, “Funeral Pyres an Option in Colorado Mountain Town,” Associated Press, February 1, 2011, https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2011/feb/1/funeral-pyres-an-option-in-colorado-mountain-town.
Page 37, They are formally known as “forensic anthropology research facilities”: Tom Scheve, “How Body Farms Work,” How Stuff Works, June 18, 2008, https://science.howstuffworks.com/body-farm.htm.
Page 37, In Australia (and a few other places), vertical burials: “Standing the Dead to Rest at Australia’s Upright Cemetery,” Funeral Zone, January 26, 2017: https://www.funeralzone.com.au/blog/upright-burials.
Page 38, Swedish biologist Susanne Wiigh-Mäsak has been developing: Peter Vinthagen Simpson, “Swedes Told to Bury ‘Freeze-Dried’ Dead,” The Local Sweden, April 23, 2013, https://www.thelocal.se/20130424/47524.
Page 39, The Capsula Mundi pods will be entirely organic: Paula Erizanu, “The Biodegradable Burial Pod That Turns Your Body into a Tree,” CNN, May 3, 2017, http://www.cnn.com/2017/05/03/world/eco-solutions-capsula-mundi/index.html.
Page 39, Recompose is the brainchild of Washington: Brendan Kiley, “Seattle Could Get an Urban Death Project Human Composter in Just 7 Years,” Seattle Times, last updated October 31, 2016, https://www.seattletimes.com/life/from-corpse-to-compost-the-urban-death-projects-modest-proposal.
Chapter 3. Making a Plan: Green Burials and Home Funerals
Page 43, “The reality is that you will grieve forever”: Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, On Grief and Grieving: Finding the Meaning of Grief through the Five Stages of Loss (New York: Scribner, 2007), 230.
Page 43, “While more than nine in ten Americans think it’s important to talk”: “A Conversation with Ellen Goodman about the Conversation Project,” Stanford School of Medicine, https://aging.stanford.edu/2013/11/talking-ellen-goodman.
Page 45, Traditionally, the Irish celebrate the deceased at home: “Weird Funeral and Burial Practices,” Nerdy Gaga, July 28, 2011, http://www.nerdygaga.com/4155/weird-funeral-and-burial-practices.
Page 46, Few in America currently care for their dead
at home, but the number is increasing: Katie Zezima, “Home Burials Offer an Intimate Alternative,” New York Times, July 20, 2009, http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/21/us/21funeral.html.
Page 48, An average estimate of a modern funeral and burial: “How Much Does the Average Funeral Cost?” Parting.com, January 23, 2017, https://www.parting.com/blog/how-much-does-the-average-funeral-cost.
Page 51, The “Funeral Rule” of the Federal Trade Commission: “The FTC Funeral Rule,” Federal Trade Commission, July 2012, https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0300-ftc-funeral-rule.
Chapter 4. Legalities to Consider
Page 55, However, as of 2017, ten states require you to appoint a funeral: “Your Funeral Rights,” Funeral Consumers Alliance, https://funerals.org/?consumers=your-funeral-rights.
Page 56, Here is what these states require, as described by: Lee Webster and Josh Slocum, Restoring Families’ Right to Choose: The Call for Funeral Legislation Change in America (Seattle, WA: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2016), a publication of the National Home Funeral Alliance and the Funeral Consumers Alliance. In addition, this list of states can be found on the National Home Funeral Alliance’s website, under “Ten Restrictive States” (http://homefuneralalliance.org/the-law/problem-states) and “Quick Guide to Legal Requirements for Home Funerals in Your State” (http://homefuneralalliance.org/the-law/quick-guide).
Page 58, According to USLegal.com, “State legislatures have adopted”: “Dead Bodies,” USLegal.com, https://deadbodies.uslegal.com.
Page 59, To qualify as next of kin, a person must be over eighteen: For a comprehensive list of next of kin, see “Next of Kin,” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Next_of_kin.
Page 62, As an example, the Oregon home funeral packet contains: “Matters of Record,” Oregon State Vital Records, July 2014. Note that the Oregon home funeral packet isn’t available online; it’s mailed when requested with a telephone call.
Chapter 5. It Takes a Village: Getting Help and Hiring Professionals
Page 69, The Green Burial Council defines greenwashing: Lee Webster, Changing Landscapes: Exploring the Growth of Ethical, Compassionate, and Environmentally Sustainable Green Funeral Service (Seattle, WA: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, Green Burial Council International, 2017), 129.
Page 70, “Like birth, death is one of life’s most important”: Richard Gunderman, “Midwives for the Dying,” The Atlantic, December 16, 2013, https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2013/12/midwives-for-the-dying/282344.
Page 70, an end-of-life doula can provide emotional, psychological, and spiritual support: For more information, visit the National End-of-Life Doula Alliance (NEDA), http://www.nedalliance.org/about.html.
Page 71, Cassandra Yonder calls death midwifery “a grassroots”: Cassandra Yonder, “Beyond Yonder,” Death Midwifery, http://www.deathmidwifery.ca/death_death_midwifery.html.
Page 71, Another important role in the death-care continuum: Lee Webster, “Clearly Defined: Matching Our Terminology to Our Intentions,” National Home Funeral Alliance, http://homefuneralalliance.org/resources/what-are-we-called.
Page 71, According to Lee Webster, founding member of the National End-of-Life Doula Alliance: Lee Webster, email correspondence with author, January 27, 2018.
Page 72, Nancy Ward, who runs Sacred Endings in Scappoose: Megan Brescini, “Women of Death,” Willamette Week, May 19, 2009, http://www.wweek.com/portland/article-10563-women-of-death.html.
Chapter 6. A Place to Rest: Green Cemeteries and Backyard Burials
Page 74, “The use of outer burial containers or vaults”: “Green Funerals and Burial,” National Funeral Directors Association, http://www.nfda.org/consumer-resources/planning-a-funeral/green-funerals-and-burial.
Page 74, The Green Burial Council distinguishes three types: “Cemetery Certification Standards,” Green Burial Council, March 6, 2015, http://greenburialcouncil.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/2015CemStandards.pdf.
Page 76, Williamsburg Cemetery in Kitchener, Ontario, boasts beautiful: Williamsburg Cemetery, City of Kitchener Cemeteries, http://www.kitchenercemeteries.ca/en/ourcemeteries/Williamsburg_Cemetery.asp.
Page 79, In essence, private property burial is often allowed: P. Fracone, “Can I Be Buried on Private Property?” MySendOff.com, https://mysendoff.com/2011/12/can-i-be-buried-on-private-property.
Page 79, I’ve read other regulations that stipulate that private burial sites: “Issues to Consider in Preparing for Disposition of Decedents,” Mass.gov, http://www.mass.gov/eohhs/gov/departments/dph/programs/environmental-health/comm-sanitation/burial-and-cremation.html.
Page 80, “If you bury a body on private land, you should draw”: Sami Grover, “The Dirt on DIY Funerals: What Is Legal?” Mother Nature Network, December 6, 2017, https://www.mnn.com/lifestyle/responsible-living/stories/legality-diy-funerals.
Page 80, According to the website Funeral Helper, “Heavy clay soils”: “Garden Burial,” Funeral Helper, http://www.funeralhelper.org/garden-burial.html.
Page 81, According to Mental Floss magazine, the phrase “six feet under”: Matt Soniak, “How Did 6 Feet Become the Standard Grave Depth?” Mental Floss, November 29, 2012, http://mentalfloss.com/article/31633/how-did-6-feet-become-standard-grave-depth.
Page 82, According to a story in the Houston Chronicle, “For those who”: Jennifer Kimrey, “The Most Interesting Facts about Morticians,” Houston Chronicle, http://work.chron.com/interesting-morticians-11175.html.
Page 83, According to professional gravediggers, shovel slowly and steadily: Corey Kilgannon, “The Ones Who Prepare the Ground for the Last Farewell, New York Times, January 30, 2006, http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/30/nyregion/the-ones-who-prepare-the-ground-for-the-last-farewell.html.
Page 83, These are adapted from advice given by Britain’s Jonny Yaxley: Xan Rice, “How to Dig a Perfect Grave: A Day with Britain’s Top Undertaker,” New Republic, November 16, 2014, https://newrepublic.com/article/120428/britains-grave-digger-year-how-did-perfect-grave.
Page 84, In 2016, the second annual Grave Digging Competition: “Speedy Shovels Shine in Slovakia,” Associated Press, November 10, 2016, https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2016-11-10/speedy-shovels-shine-in-slovakias-gravedigging-contest. See also David Moye, “Grave Diggers Get Down and Dirty at International Competition,” Huffington Post, November 11, 2016, https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/grave-digging-championship_us_5826164de4b060adb56e370d.
Page 87, The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) oversees US laws: For more information, see “Burial at Sea,” US Environmental Protection Agency, https://www.epa.gov/ocean-dumping/burial-sea; and the specific EPA regulation (40 CFR 229.1), https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CFR-2011-title40-vol25/pdf/CFR-2011-title40-vol25-sec229-1.pdf.
Page 87, New England Burials at Sea is a Massachusetts company: For more information on New England Burials at Sea, visit http://www.newenglandburialsatsea.com; my email exchange with Captain Brad White occurred April 1, 2017.
Page 88, Osama bin Laden is buried at sea. His body: Dave Gilson, “What Happens When You’re Buried at Sea?” Mother Jones, May 9, 2011, http://www.motherjones.com/environment/2011/05/bin-laden-burial-at-sea.
Chapter 7. Green Burial Containers: Handmade Caskets and Shrouds
Page 89, “The best caskets are joyful epitaphs in wood”: Steve Maxwell, “Learn How to Build a Handmade Casket,” Mother Earth News, April/May 2003, https://www.motherearthnews.com/diy/how-to-build-a-handmade-casket-zmaz03amzgoe.
Page 91, In Ghana, “fantasy coffins” are constructed to represent: Charlotte Jansen, “How Ghana’s Top Fantasy Coffin Artist Has Put the Fun in Funeral,” The Guardian, November 24, 2016, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/nov/24/paa-joe-ghana-fantasy-coffin-artist-casket-funeral.
Page 91, Still, as Mother Nature Network observed, “Producing a new coffin”: Matt Hickman, “Shelving to Die For,” Mother Nature Network, June 19, 2009, https://www.mnn.com/your-home/remodeling-design/blogs/shelving-to-die-f
or.
Page 94, The Green Burial Council declares that a “shroud is suitable”: “What Is Green Burial?” Green Burial Council, https://greenburialcouncil.org/home/what-is-green-burial.
Page 98, If you want to construct your own cardboard coffin: For a step-by-step guide to building your own cardboard coffin, download free instructions at DIYing Free, https://diyingfree.weebly.com/download.html.
Page 99, The company Coeio produces green burial items that: For more information on the Infinity Burial Suit and Shroud, visit Coeio, http://coeio.com.
Page 99, Ecopods are a natural burial chest that was designed by: For more information on the EcoPod, visit http://www.ecopod.co.uk.
Chapter 8. Green Embalming and Handling the Body
Page 101, First, embalming is never required by any state: “Embalming Green,” Elemental Cremation & Burial, https://www.elementalnw.com/2013/03/14/embalming-green.
Page 102, Green embalming fluids are made of a variety of nontoxic: For more on green embalming products, review the following sources: Curtis D. Rostad, “In Search of the Perfect Embalming Chemical, Shepherd’s Funeral Supplies, October 20, 2014, http://www.shepherds.ie/news/search-perfect-embalming-chemical; and “Greener Embalming,” AGreenerFuneral.org, http://www.agreenerfuneral.org/greener-funerals/embalming/greener-embalming.
Page 104, Here is a brief summary of the physical stages that occur: “Rigor Mortis and Other Postmortem Changes,” Encyclopedia of Death and Dying, http://www.deathreference.com/Py-Se/Rigor-Mortis-and-Other-Postmortem-Changes.html.
Page 108, In ancient times, when coins were made out of heavier metals: Julia Neuberger, Dying Well: A Guide to Enabling a Good Death (Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, 2004), 3.
Page 110, You can also approach grocery stores and other retail stores: For help locating retail stores that sell dry ice, visit Airgas, which sells Penguin brand dry ice nationally, http://dryiceideas.com/retail-locator.