Headstones at Cherokee Memorial Cemetery in Lodi are seen on a recent afternoon. (Whitney Ramirez/News-Sentinel)

Environmentalists take 'green' to the grave

You may drive a hybrid, recycle everything, eat nothing but organics and power your home with solar energy.

But when you die, are you enough of an environmentalist to ensure your burial has minimal impact on the earth?

Today, the eco-minded consumer can make arrangements so their graves not only won't hurt the Earth, but even improve it.

Those options include having cremated remains turned into a tropical reef, caskets made of 100 percent recycled paper or a graveyard that uses global positioning systems to locate graves instead of tombstones.

While some of these options aren't currently available in San Joaquin County, if a family is willing to travel for the burial or memorial service, the arrangements can be made in the area, said Mike Tansley, a mortuary operator at Lodi Funeral Home.

Tansley said if one has specific requests, it's best to make funeral arrangements early in life instead of leaving it to family members to guess after a death.

"We go over everything, right down to what clothes they want to be placed in," Tansley said. "It can be a more difficult process if the family is making the arrangements for someone who has already passed."

Currently, about half of Californians opt for standard burial and nearly everyone else opts for cremation, according to Kevin Flanagan, spokesman for the California Cemetery and Funeral Bureau.

Flanagan said most cemeteries require caskets to be placed in a cement or polymer grave liner to prevent depressions where the ground would settle over time as remains decompose.

"It's done both for aesthetics and safety," Flanagan said. "Requiring liners helps keep down maintenance costs and keeps the grounds looking nice."

Those requirements have put a crimp in the growth of green burials, but options continue to grow.

Forever Fernwood Natural Burial Ground has performed 75 burials since opening in Marin County two years ago.

The burial ground incorporate only native plants in the landscape and use fully biodegradable cotton shrouds or caskets made of pine, bamboo or cardboard, said Kim Sarnecki, Forever Fernwood site administrator.

Embalming fluid, grave liners and decorative metals are not used in any of the burials, Sarnecki said.

Visitors to the 32-acre burial ground see a landscape devoid of tombstones and gravemarkers.

Instead, graves are marked using a global positioning system to allow family and friends to visit. Rocks, trees or native plants are sometimes added to the area for additional recognition, Sarnecki said.

For those who choose cremation, Eternal Reefs, a company based in Georgia, offers an alternative to having one's ashes scattered at sea.

The company designs environmentally safe "memorial reefs" using the cremated remains and a cement mixture to create new habitat for marine life.

Eternal Reefs began when Don Brawley noticed significant deterioration to the Florida Keys, where he went diving regularly. According to the company's Web site, he then set to work trying to find an artificial way to recreate the reefs. In 1990, he had his solution: the Reef Ball.

In 1998, Brawley's father-in-law requested to have his remains included in one of the reef balls after his death.

Now people can have their cremated remains included in a community reef, with remains of several people included, or request a personal reef. The price varies between $995 and $7,000, depending on the size of the reef and number of remains used to create it.

Another option is to have cremains turned into an artificial diamond.

LifeGem, a company in Illinois, converts the carbon from cremains into graphite. The graphite is then placed in a diamond press, which uses heat and pressure to create a rough diamond.

After about 24 weeks, the diamond is completed and cut to specifications. Depending on the carat of the diamond, the cost ranges from $3,000 to $20,000.

A standard burial costs on average between $5,000 and $12,000.

Regardless of the reason behind the choice to be buried, cremated or turned into a piece of jewelry, Flanagan said the state doesn't interfere with final requests unless it poses an environmental hazard or other danger.

"People have very specific requests for burial or what happens to their remains," he said. "Our job is to ensure those wishes are met."

Contact reporter Rebecca Adler at rebeccaa@lodinews.com.

First published: Thursday, December 28, 2006