A new green funeral: gross but green
Fair warning: This is pretty creepy.
What if, instead of burying or cremating dead bodies, we dissolved them in lye and flushed the liquid down the drain?
Well, my friend, get used to the idea: it could be the wave of the future. The process is called alkaline hydrolysis, and it uses lye and 300-degree heat, along with 60 pounds of pressure per square inch, to destroy bodies in huge cylinders that resemble iron lungs.
To date, no mortuaries use the process, and only two medical centers practice it, but only on cadavers donated to science. Although some places, including the Mayo Clinic, use it on human medical waste and animals.
Critics say the process is too much like a horror movie, but others contend that, when you're dead, you won't care how your body is disposed of.
The resulting liquid from the process has a strong ammonia smell and is unsightly, but isn't harmful to the environment like crematorium emissions and won't leech into the ground and into our water system like some resin-painted coffins and embalming fluids.
Creepy, yes...but an undeniably greener choice.
Comments [3]
Does Humane Veal Exist?
Eco-Friendly Halloween Costumes
Ed Begley, Jr. Talks to GreenDaily About Going Green for Cheap
