Colorado Legalizes Composting Human Remains: The Greenest “Final Disposition”

By Alida Soileau

Image: https://www.seattletimes.com/life/recompose-the-first-human-compositing-funeral-home-in-the-u-s-is-now-open-for-business/ (Ken Lambert / The Seattle Times)

“Ashes to ashes, dust to dust,”[1] referring to older translations of the biblical verse Genesis 3:19, is perhaps better said as “you are soil, to the soil you will return,”[2] a newer translation of the same.

On May 10, 2021, Governor Polis signed SB21-006, “Concerning the conversion of human remains to basic elements within a container using an accelerated process,” into law.[3] Colorado is now the second state to legalize the composting of human remains.[4] This new law legalizes “natural organic reduction,” a process pioneered by Washington-based Recompose,[5] a start-up that opened its doors in December 2020.[6] Through Recompose’s urban-friendly process involving wood chips, alfalfa, and straw, turning human remains into one cubic yard of soil takes a mere 30 days.[7] The deceased is laid into an eight-by-four-foot vessel, which is then pumped with oxygen to increase microbial activity, speeding up decomposition – or “reduction.”[8]

The Colorado law substitutes “final disposition” for existing language like “burial,” “cremation,” “internment,” and “entombment” in Colorado statutes.[9] Additionally, it prohibits the soil created by natural organic reduction (NOR) from being sold or used to grow food for human consumption.[10] In Washington, the first state to legalize the process, the deceased’s loved ones have the option to retrieve the soil or donate it for ecological restoration.[11] One of the sponsors of Colorado’s legislation, Representative Matt Soper,[12] learned from the Colorado Department of Natural Resources that placing the soil on public lands would be legal.[13]

Notably, Colorado is already the only state where “open air cremation” is legal.[14] The addition of NOR as another alternative to traditional burial or cremation puts Colorado on the forefront of the death industry. (Yes, there is such a thing,[15] and it’s worth roughly $15 billion in the US.)[16] Additionally, NOR has broad appeal. Representative Soper points to both liberal constituents attracted by the environmental benefits and conservative constituents from rural communities who like the idea of being “connected to the land that they were born and raised on.”[17]

The final disposition of human remains invariably involves an ick factor. Some prefer embalming (pumping the body full of preservation-inducing chemicals), some cremation, some “green” burial (with no embalming and a plain casket – or a simple shroud in place of a casket),[18] and some alkaline hydrolysis (effectively dissolving a body using water and lye).[19] While respecting one’s freedom to choose their final disposition is paramount, natural organic reduction has emerged as a greener – and arguably more graceful – alternative.

In comparison to all other final dispositions, save perhaps green burial (discussed in brief, below), NOR is a much more environmentally friendly alternative. NOR uses fewer fossil fuels than traditional burial or cremation, and it actually reduces existing carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. As bodies turn into soil, that soil sequesters carbon. Further, the soil allows for the growth of new plants, which in turn convert carbon dioxide into oxygen.[20] Specifically, Recompose estimates, “between .84 and 1.4 metric tons of carbon dioxide . . . saved each time someone chooses organic reduction over cremation or conventional burial.”[21]

NOR also remedies a newer problem conventional cemeteries in urban areas are facing: lack of space.[22] Recompose’s CEO and founder, Katrina Spade, envisioned Recompose as an urban solution from the start, entitling her Master’s thesis, which led to the development of the company, “Of Dirt and Decomposition: Proposing a Place for the Urban Dead.”[23] The process of converting remains into soil takes a short 30 days in Recompose’s warehouse-type facility. The existing NOR location in Washington poses few – if any – nuisance concerns. The compliance director for the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency said, “the emissions and odors from NOR are expected to be minimal compared to other operations . . . including cremat[ories], demolitions of asbestos-filled buildings and marijuana cultivation.[24] Finally, Recompose boasts transparent pricing. The cost of their service is a flat $5,500,[25] which is slightly more than the median cost of cremation ($5,150),[26] but significantly less than the median cost of traditional burial (upwards of $7,640).[27]

In sum, natural organic reduction is a promising prospect for Colorado. With little, if any, negative environmental impact and a comparatively reasonable price tag, it could be the next big thing – if we can look past the ick factor. Given all the options (discussed in more detail, below), being turned into soil to help restore the environment sounds pretty good. “You are soil, to the soil you will return.”[28]

[1] https://literarydevices.net/ashes-to-ashes/

[2] https://www.biblegateway.com/verse/en/Genesis%203%3A19

[3] https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb21-006

[4] https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/29/climate/colorado-bill-compost-body.html

[5] https://www.seattletimes.com/life/recompose-the-first-human-compositing-funeral-home-in-the-u-s-is-now-open-for-business/

[6] https://recompose.life/who-we-are/#history

[7] https://recompose.life/our-model/#the-process

[8] https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/09/02/everything-youre-afraid-to-ask-about-human-composting

[9] https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb21-006

[10] https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb21-006

[11] https://www.seattletimes.com/life/recompose-the-first-human-compositing-funeral-home-in-the-u-s-is-now-open-for-business/

[12] https://leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/documents/2021A/bills/2021a_006_enr.pdf

[13] https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/29/climate/colorado-bill-compost-body.html

[14] https://www.cpr.org/2019/12/16/colorado-to-consider-one-more-post-death-option-human-body-composting/

[15] https://nfda.org/news/statistics

[16] https://www.perc.org/2007/12/15/green-burial-its-only-natural/

[17] https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/29/climate/colorado-bill-compost-body.html

[18] https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/could-funeral-future-help-heal-environment-180957953/#:~:text=Each%20after%2Ddeath%20action%20comes,and%20mercury%20into%20the%20atmosphere.

[19] https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/articles/2020-03-12/more-states-legalize-alkaline-hydrolysis-dissolving-dead-bodies-in-water

[20] https://recompose.life/our-model/#the-process

[21] https://recompose.life/our-model/#the-process

[22] https://www.forbes.com/sites/bisnow/2017/11/03/urban-cemeteries-running-out-of-space-as-baby-boomers-enter-twilight-years/?sh=3955c6f4579c

[23] https://www.seattletimes.com/life/recompose-the-first-human-compositing-funeral-home-in-the-u-s-is-now-open-for-business/

[24] https://www.seattletimes.com/life/recompose-the-first-human-compositing-funeral-home-in-the-u-s-is-now-open-for-business/

[25] https://recompose.life/death-care/#pricing

[26] https://nfda.org/news/statistics

[27] http://www.nfda.org/news/statistics

[28] https://www.biblegateway.com/verse/en/Genesis%203%3A19

Reference: Options for “Final Disposition”

Traditional Burial

Traditional burials, which include embalming, use 4.3 million gallons of embalming fluid (827,060 gallons of which is formaldehyde, methanol, and benzene); 20 million board feet of hardwoods; 1.6 million tons of concrete; 17,000 tons of copper and bronze; and 64,500 tons of steel each year in the U.S., by one estimate.[1] Also worth considering from an environmental perspective are the greenhouse gas emissions from manufacturing and transporting all the materials associated with embalming and burial – chemicals, cosmetics, caskets, vault materials, and so forth.”[2] Additionally, caskets and burial vaults leach iron, copper, lead, zinc, and cobalt, among other things, into the soil, posing a risk of groundwater contamination.[3] Even in the best case scenario, when little leaches into the soil, urban cemetery space is a growing concern. Cemeteries in larger cities have little room to expand.[4] For example, Arlington National Cemetery will likely run out of room by 2041.[5] Finally, traditional burials are the most expensive final disposition option. The national median cost of a funeral (with embalming, transport, viewing, casket, and burial) in 2019 was $7,640.[6] Most cemeteries require a vault, and that addition brings the median cost to $9,135.[7] These figures do not include monuments or other markers.[8]

Green Burial

Green burial has surged in popularity in recent years. Its express aim is to minimize environmental impacts by forgoing embalming, concrete vaults, metal caskets, and other non-biodegradable materials. Individuals who choose green burial usually opt for a wooden casket or simple shroud.[9] Put plainly, green burials look a lot like burials looked in the 1800s, before embalming became standard practice. The carbon footprint is minimal.[10] There is little data on the price tag of a green burial, but the greatest costs are almost always the plot of land itself and a monument or marker.

Cremation

Cremation is the most popular final disposition among Americans. 53% of people chose cremation in 2018.[11] There is a common misconception that cremation is environmentally friendly. In reality, cremating one individual requires roughly 28 gallons of gas, roughly the amount it takes to fill a large SUV’s gas tank.[12] Worldwide, cremations emit more than 6.8 million metric tons of carbon dioxide, accounting for approximately 0.02% of all carbon dioxide emissions annually.[13] Environmental regulations typically require crematories to filter metals and particulate matter that come from things like dental fillings,[14] but they do not sequester or neutralize the carbon dioxide, emitting it freely.[15] Finally, cremation is costly, but significantly less expensive than traditional embalming and burial. The national median cost of a funeral (with viewing and cremation) in 2019 was $5,150.[16]

Alkaline Hydrolysis

Alkaline hydrolysis is a more recent development. The process uses water, heat, pressure, and potassium hydroxide to dissolve remains[17] into a liquid composed of “water, salt, and other components safe enough to go down the drain.”[18] Body donation programs have long used this process,[19] but commercial facilities have run into issues with permitting. (Municipalities frequently ask, “Is the resulting liquid really safe enough to go down the drain?”) If you are lucky enough to be located someplace where alkaline hydrolysis is legal (to date, in more than 20 U.S. states),[20] it is relatively environmentally friendly, using about 1/8 the energy required by cremation.[21] The process’s carbon footprint is also substantially smaller than cremation, cutting carbon dioxide emissions by almost 90%.[22] Finally, the price of alkaline hydrolysis tends to be lower than that of cremation,[23] but lack of accessibility remains the greatest issue.

[1] https://www.greenburialcouncil.org/media_packet.html

[2] https://recompose.life/our-model/#the-process

[3] https://recompose.life/our-model/#the-process

[4]http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/108132/EUR_ICP_EHNA_01_04_01(A).pdf;jsessionid=BE6937BAAF91780DDEA887BF92C1C4C7?sequence=1

[5] https://www.forbes.com/sites/bisnow/2017/11/03/urban-cemeteries-running-out-of-space-as-baby-boomers-enter-twilight-years/?sh=3955c6f4579c

[6] http://www.nfda.org/news/statistics

[7] http://www.nfda.org/news/statistics

[8] http://www.nfda.org/news/statistics

[9] https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/22/smarter-living/green-funeral-burial-environment.html

[10] https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/22/smarter-living/green-funeral-burial-environment.html

[11] https://www.cpr.org/2019/12/16/colorado-to-consider-one-more-post-death-option-human-body-composting/

[12] https://recompose.life/our-model/#the-process