Environmentally friendly or just a complete waste?
Green burials, green funerals, or in other words natural burials have been introduced into the funeral industry over the last couple of years and have shown to be beneficial to both deceased and the economy. This new way of burial style is important in the funeral industry field because adding this service can expand the profit and customer ratio, not only helping by bringing money into funeral homes but also adding an option for those who are Muslim, people who live eco-friendly lives, or people who would like to save money overall because funerals are very expensive. Now we go on to talk about benefits, what are the benefits of green funerals? We can start off by talking about the cost factor; how cost-effective green burials are, the natural settings of green burials, and the expansion of natural burials, but also discussing traditional funerals.
Money is a problem every day and everywhere in this world and as time changes the prices for things go up and down but one expense, I haven’t seen go down is the cost of a funeral service. During the time of bereavement, the last thing a grieving family wants to do is be worried about money and how they will pay for their loved one’s funeral. “The average price of a funeral in the United States in 2006 was $6,195, according to the National Funeral Directors Association's biennial Member General Price List Survey. When cemetery costs such as a lot, vault, and plot marker are added, the total can be well over $10,000. Typically, green burials cost half that price.” (Registered Rep, 4 Mar. 2009) “Cremation is around one-quarter the cost of a conventional burial, which ranges from $5,000 to $15,000. Green burials fall somewhere in between because of the modest container used and the lack of a concrete burial vault or grave marker.” (Cohen, 29 October 2022). These two quotes illustrate the price values within the funeral industry and the services being provided. With this new addition of green burials, you will benefit from it, the cost will still be extensive but not as much as having a traditional burial or cremation.
The settings and materials used for a green burial are the key components of the “natural” part of the burial. When we think green, we think “clean”; That’s what green funerals are all about. Everything included in this funeral service is 100% Eco-friendly. “Natural or green burials account for a tiny but growing share of all funerals in the United States. Bodies are buried in a shroud or biodegradable caskets made of wood, bamboo, or cardboard. No embalming, grave liners, or conspicuous headstones are allowed.” (Washingtonpost.com, 31 Jan. 2023) The use of biodegradable caskets and no embalming are major changes just because these should have been changes that were made almost 20 years ago just because of how toxic and eco-unfriendly they are. This quote gives another example of biodegradable caskets along with urns that are available. “Phaneuf offers caskets made of a sustainable willow branch that is woven into a casket, without metal, that can biodegrade. There are also eco-friendly urns made of clay or cornstarch.” (Business NH Magazine, 2012)
We’ve all been to a funeral or two in our lives and I can say speaking for myself, there needs to be a change within the funeral industry because it should not be as hard and tiring as it is now. Everyone knows the problem with the cost of funerals but the problems go deeper. These two quotes show issues within this field that haven’t been addressed directly but with the help of green burials coming about, most people want to skip the old and toxic and get with the new and clean service.” There is growing awareness of the potential threat of toxic chemicals in groundwater from the decomposition of human bodies and the use of embalming fluids. Some scientists have even compared cemeteries to landfills” (Wickersham,2013)” Opponents of traditional burial say conventional embalming fluids, and the concrete used to prevent graves from collapsing as a body decomposes, are bad for the environment.” (Waldmeir,2022) Finding ways to cut out the factors that aren’t environmentally friendly is just the thing the economy needed.
I’ve grown up only knowing of two ways of after-death services which are in a casket going 6 feet under or cremation and now with the talk about green burials it is interesting to see how much this funeral service expands throughout the world. "I think that the funeral industry is one of the slowest industries to embrace change," Cooper said. "But I think that you have to (embrace change) or you stay stagnant. Like any other business if you don't adapt to the change, I don't think you're going to stay relevant." (Pequeno, 10 October 2022) This quote stood out to me because, during this time that I’ve been researching green burials, I’ve found that some funeral homes are not going to make the addition of adding natural burials to their services and I find it confusing that people would rather stick with the traditional way of burial. “The growth of green burials and the variation in the way that they are practiced raise broader questions about the interrelationships between grief and landscape.” (Yarwood,2015) I feel this concept can be knit-picked because it can be an ongoing battle about whether you want your loved one buried around other people in a cemetery or out in the trees in a private but not so-private area.
Based on my analysis, green burials are more effective and have more benefits than traditional funeral services. This research question is important to the community because making after-death choices are never easy and it is important to people within my professional field because they are able to give people options for an effective burial. I suggest funeral homes stop using embalming fluid as it has clearly been ruled as toxic if exposed, the caskets should be biodegradable, and the cost of services should be discussed because you shouldn’t have to pay the amount of a mortgage to put your loved ones to rest. I believe in the future aspects of the funeral industry will continue to change for the better and more burial types will come. I’ve never liked the traditional way of funeral services so I told myself cremation would be fine but after doing my research on natural burials, it might have just won me over.
Work Cited
"Burials--Going Green and Greener." Registered Rep, 4 Mar. 2009. Gale Business: Insights, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A194940774/GBIB?u=ucinc_main&sid=bookmark-GBIB&xid=6e69e7fb. Accessed 29 Mar. 2023.
Cohen, S. (2022, October 29). Why and how to plan your own green funeral; In Canada, it's not as easy as you think, reports Shawna Cohen. Globe & Mail [Toronto, Canada], P6. https://link-gale-com.uc.idm.oclc.org/apps/doc/A724417845/BIC?u=ucinc_main&sid=summon&xid=29ae8752
"Comparing green funeral options, from composting to natural burial to water cremation." Washingtonpost.com, 31 Jan. 2023, p. NA. Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A735334329/OVIC?u=ucinc_main&sid=bookmark-OVIC&xid=42d2dac0. Accessed 29 Mar. 2023.
Yarwood, R., Sidaway, J.D., Kelly, C. and Stillwell, S. (2015), Sustainable deathstyles?. The Geographical Journal, 181: 172-184. https://doi-org.uc.idm.oclc.org/10.1111/geoj.12087
Funerals: From Green to Bling. (2012). Business NH Magazine, 29(11), 10. https://search-ebscohost-com.uc.idm.oclc.org/login.aspx?direct=true&db=b9h&AN=83660549&site=ehost-live&scope=siteLinks to an external site.
Pequeno IV, A. (2022, October 10). Green Burials Headed to State: 'Organic reduction' to change the funeral industry. San Fernando Valley Business Journal, 27(21), 1+. https://link-gale-com.uc.idm.oclc.org/apps/doc/A723652465/GBIB?u=ucinc_main&sid=summon&xid=eb113cfb
Wickersham, M. E., & Yehl, Robert (Sherman). (2013, Winter). The public cemetery: meeting new challenges in a time of change. The Public Manager, 42(4), 62+. https://link-gale-com.uc.idm.oclc.org/apps/doc/A353323478/GBIB?u=ucinc_main&sid=bookmark-GBIB&xid=11ca3e48
Waldmeir, P. (2022). The American way of death goes green. FT.Com, https://uc.idm.oclc.org/login?qurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.proquest.com%2Ftrade-journals%2Famerican-way-death-goes-green%2Fdocview%2F2730980364%2Fse-2%3Faccountid%3D2909