Sustainable burials save land from being developed, lack chemicals

After dedicating a life to the environment and conservation, some individuals feel that they can stay green even in the afterlife.

The process of a green burial is not new. Rather, it is a return to the original burial processes done before the Civil War.

A green burial is without embalming fluid or a coffin. Individuals are buried in a shroud about 12 inches below the surface, the ideal distance to expedite the decomposition process. There is no headstone or marking feature to display where the individual is buried.

But in return the buried get their wish. With their burial, the land in which they are entombed becomes hallowed ground. Through a conservation easement, a contract signed saying that the land they are buried on cannot ever be developed, the land stays forever preserved as green space.

There are not many of these conservation cemeteries. Of the few, one is Prairie Creek Conservation Cemetery in Gainesville.

There, loved ones can be buried in a biodegradable container, such as an all-wood casket or a shroud. Not using embalming fluid prevents introducing any pollutants into the soil. Graves are measured by site personnel, and sites can be located through GPS and coordinate measurements. Bodies are buried as spread out as possible, in order to ensure the most land possible in conserved.

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