Water cremation — also referred to as aquamation or alkaline hydrolysis — is a substitute for flame, or fireplace, cremation.
Like flame cremation, water cremation is a course of that reduces human stays to bone fragments. However as a substitute of flame, it makes use of water and an alkali answer of potassium hydroxide that, when heated, dissolves the physique, forsaking bone fragments and a sterile liquid. Alkaline hydrolysis accelerates the pure decomposition course of from the many years required of a standard casket burial to hours.
In the course of the course of, the stays are positioned in an hermetic capsule with alkalized water, and thru light water stream, all natural materials is damaged down. When the method is full, the bone stays are collected, dried, and processed earlier than being returned to the household.
Environmentally talking, it’s estimated that water cremation can reduce power use by 90 p.c and greenhouse-gas emissions by 35 p.c. (Flame cremation produces about 1.04 billion kilos of carbon dioxide every year in the US.) The effluent is returned to wastewater for processing, so the water is just not wasted.
Environmentally talking, it’s estimated that water cremation can reduce power use by 90 p.c and greenhouse-gas emissions by 35 p.c.
From a monetary perspective, water prices about the identical or barely greater than flame cremation.
The aquamation course of yields about 20 to 30 p.c extra ashes. These are sometimes white or tan, whereas the ashes from flame cremation are grayer in shade.
Water cremation is authorized in about half the states, and even the place it’s authorized, few services provide the service, making entry an ongoing challenge.
As such, it’s price noting that alkaline hydrolysis is the greener cremation choice, however fireplace cremation is taken into account extra eco-friendly than typical burial. Furthermore, there are environmentally aware steps you’ll be able to take to make fireplace cremation a fair greener choice. (Once more, “inexperienced” exists on a spectrum.)
The Order of the Good Demise, a nonprofit devoted to “constructing a significant, eco-friendly, and equitable finish of life,” presents the next tricks to inexperienced your fireplace cremation:
- Select the crematory closest to you that has the latest gear.
- Purchase carbon offsets your self or discover a funeral residence that purchases these for each cremation.
- Don’t purchase funeral merchandise that insist they will make a tree out of the ashes.
