“˜Green Funerals’ Catching on in U.S.

People around the world are now being encouraged to both live, and die, in more environmentally friendly ways. 

“Green funerals”, which include cardboard coffins, burial plots in natural settings and clothes made from natural fibers, are the latest trend among those who want to lead eco-friendly lives at every stage.

"People are trying to think about what’s the best way to live and with that, what’s the best way to die," said Green Endings’ funeral director Roslyn Cassidy during an interview with the Associated Press. Green Endings provides eco-friendly funerals.

Although the trend has only recently caught on in the United States, Britain has long been a world leader in green funerals. At the Natural Death Center’s Green Funeral Exhibition in London this weekend, companies in the business showcased their products for all to see.

"You can take any funeral and make it greener," the Center’s director, Michael Jarvis, told the Associated Press.

The Natural Death Center provides a handbook suggesting environmental targets for cemeteries.

Despite their concept of protecting the environment by going back to basics, an eco-funeral can be more complicated than many realize. Bodies are not embalmed in a green funeral, but are instead dressed in pure fiber clothes.

Experts say refrigeration or dry ice can perform the same function as formaldehyde, which can seep into the water system.

Biodegradable coffins, including one displayed at the exhibit made from wicker and decorated with flowers, differ greatly from traditional mahogany coffins.

Linda McDowall, an exhibit visitor, admired another coffin bundled in a beige, leaf-adorned shroud, and remarked that it looked quite comfortable.

"Cozy and warm are not words you associate with death," McDowall, a 48-year-old German and French translator, told the AP.

Cardboard coffins are of equivalent thickness to their wooden counterparts, but become biodegrade within three months.

"The trouble is, they are a bit ungainly to use," said Oakfield Wood burial ground director Oliver Peacock.  

"They’re not terribly easy to handle and if it’s wet, they don’t look their best either," he told the AP.

In the UK, recent legislation aimed at reducing the mercury content of plastics and treatments used in coffins goes into effect in 2010, although all biodegradable coffins now meet the new standards.

Peacock said extreme care is used in burying coffins in eco-friendly graveyards.

Oakfield Wood, initially a pasture when it opened in 1995, is now dotted with 1,600 trees that along with wooden plaques mark individual plots.  

Marble tombstones are discouraged, since marble is not a renewable source and shipping and mining produce carbon, according to Green Endings’ funeral director Jeremy Smite.

In Britain, cremations account for 70 percent of the country’s funerals.   Ashes and coffin remains are then placed in glass, ceramic or bamboo urns.

Cassidy added that tiny details play a significant role in green funerals, such as using smaller cars instead of limousines in funeral processions.

"What people are wanting is to know that they’re doing the best they can both for their loved ones and for the environment," Cassidy said.

As far as prices, funeral directors say green funerals, like any, rum the gamut.   

"It’s about choice, not price," Fran Hall, marketing director for Epping Forest Burial Park, told the Associated Press.