Embedded Files
President Nixon created the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and signed numerous milestone environmental laws, including the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act, and the Endangered Species Act (Dykstra, 2008; Hayward et al., 2000). Beginning with citizens living in western developed countries, over the past 60 years there has been an increasing interest in finding new ways to reduce waste, energy use, and other polluting activities at an individual level (Kelly, 2018 & Borden, 2019). Over the last few decades in the United States, among important segments of the population, notably younger generations, living a more “green” lifestyle has been a common social and political trend (Ellsmoor, 2019). A recent study by Southern Cross University indicated that out of the 913 GREEN BURIAL: THE LAST FOOTPRINT 10 collected respondents that were given the online survey, 77% wanted to learn more about how to live a more sustainable lifestyle. This study was administered to both Americans and Australians; “20.7% of the sample was from Australia, and 79.3% identified as American” (“Going Green”, 2019 & Ellsmoor, 2019). The environmental movement is no longer considered as radical in 2020. Climate change and discussions of a viable future for humanity are pervasive topics in the social environment, and the United Nations itself established sustainable development goals (SDGs) that address climate change, energy, clean water, and sanitation to be obtained by 2030 (Sustainable Development Goals, 2015). Lowering one’s carbon footprint and therefore, lowering greenhouse gas emissions, has evolved from a radical concept to a more public one. The 2017 study from Southern Cross University also showed that “87% of respondents said they made efforts to live an eco-friendly lifestyle, and that 72% were driven to leave a better planet for their children”(“Going Green”, 2019 & Ellsmoor, 2019) Living a more sustainable or green lifestyle has also impacted people’s view on having children, wanting to reduce their carbon footprint by decreasing resources consumed as well as conserve “breathing room for those of us who are already here or on the way” (Hymas, 2011). This segment of the population is called GINKs, green inclination, no kids (Hymas, 2011). The individual interest in environmentalism has caused a systemic change as well. Current examples of this are seen through the trending issues of renewable energy and the more recent plastic bag ban legislation. In a recent survey by the market research firm Maslansky & Partners, “70 percent of respondents said America should produce 100 percent of its electricity from renewable energy sources; more than half thought renewables were a good idea even if they GREEN BURIAL: THE LAST FOOTPRINT 11 raise energy bills” (Kaldjian & Barua, 2019). The firm examined service messaging, “questioned utility execs and environmentalists, ran a national opinion survey, and did a couple of three-hour sit-downs with “media informed customers” in Minneapolis and Phoenix” (Kaldjian & Barua, 2019). This survey reveals the public’s view on renewable energy, but it also shows how far the environmental movement has come in the form of public opinion. There has been an unparalleled increase in renewable energy acquiring, expansion, and pledges. “As of November 2018, 99 U.S. cities have committed to 100 percent renewable energy, up from just 50 cities a year ago” (Kaldjian & Barua, 2019). What’s more, is that eight states have banned single-use plastic bags in hopes of diminishing the destructive impacts on our water ecosystems and also alleviate stress on landfills and waste administration. These states include California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, New York, Oregon, and Vermont (State Plastic and Paper Bag Legislation, 2020). Traditional Funeral Practices, Cemeteries, and Environmental Impacts Environmentalism has stirred consumers to think in-depth about the environmental impact of their decisions across a wide range of categories and life domains. (“The Evolution of the Sustainability Mindset”, 2018). One of these categories is end of life decisions including the environmental impact of how our bodies are taken care of when we die. Traditional burials and environmental impact. Traditional burials are extremely polluting to our planet and are built around the idea of preserving the dead (Rehagen, 2016). Collectively, we put so much non-biodegradable material in the ground that is toxic to the surrounding soil, can potentially leak into groundwater, and contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions (Fournier, 2018 & Harris, 2007). For example, bodies slowly decay GREEN BURIAL: THE LAST FOOTPRINT 12 anaerobically, and this loss of oxygen produces methane, a potent greenhouse gas (Fournier, 2018). According to Mark Harris, the author of Grave Matters, "The typical 10-acre cemetery ground contains enough coffin wood to construct more than 40 homes, 900+ tons of casket steel, and another 20,000 tons of vault concrete" (Harris, 2007). All of the metal, varnish, and toxic adhesive used to manufacture traditional caskets with reinforced steel and shellacked hardwoods, and added embellishments are in no way biodegradable or suitable for the encompassing land (Fournier, 2018). Emissions also transpire during the production of
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