How to Plan an Eco-friendly Funeral

How to Plan an Eco-friendly Funeral

Now, more than ever, it is important that we take the environment into consideration in everything we do. Such considerations not only need to be looked attentively at during our lifetimes but also when we arrange our funerals. Being eco-friendly for a funeral can involve being mindful of all aspects of the funeral, from which florists you use, and if you select cheap flowers or more expensive arrangements from your florist, to the way in which you are finally laid to rest. If you are looking for ways in which you can make your final gesture of being kinder to the environment, our guide to how to plan an eco-friendly funeral is for you.

Who Would Want an Eco-friendly Funeral?

There are many different types of people who would appreciate an eco-funeral. The deceased may have been a person that felt more at home in the Great Outdoors, rather than indoors. Your loved one could have been one for picking wildflowers rather than having flowers delivered.
Alternatively, the person that wanted an eco-friendly funeral could have been passionate about all things to do with protecting the environment. Whatever the reason, eco-friendly funerals are becoming increasingly popular and are quite easy to achieve when you know-how.

Burial or Cremation?

Although having a cremation may seem like the best way to be laid to rest as it inevitably takes up less space, being buried is actually the more environmentally friendly of the two. Apparently, the process of cremation has an incredibly negative impact on the environment and can use the
equivalent energy of a 500-mile car journey. The cremation process can also release as much as 500kg of carbon dioxide into the Earth’s atmosphere. However, if mourners are coming from far and wide to attend a burial, then this can also have a negative impact on the environment with fuel-guzzling, Co2 spewing cars contributing to pollution. It is important to weigh up the pros and cons of the individual service you want to have when you die to establish which one would be more favourable for the environment.

Eco-coffins

Environmentally friendly coffins are not an entirely new concept. Eco-coffins have been available in assorted guises for decades. Nowadays, you have plenty of options and styles from which to choose. A biodegradable coffin will minimise your pact on the environment after you are gone. Some options to consider include coffins created using bamboo, willow, rattan, or even cardboard. Coffins made using cardboard are created using recycled paper and can also be personalised by yourself before your death or by family members. Cardboard coffins are much stronger than they may sound but will still biodegrade at a much faster rate than other materials.

Your Carbon Footprint

To minimise your carbon footprint, use local services. This means using a flower shop close to where the service will take place so that the flower delivery service won’t need to travel far to supply the flowers. Flowers by post could also be another alternative to same day or next day flower delivery that can minimise your impact on the environment as the sympathy flowers will travel with other mail, rather than needing to be delivered separately.

Damage Caused by Embalming Fluids

Usually, dead bodies are preserved using embalming fluids which stop the corpse from decaying. However, these chemicals will eventually leak into the ground after you have been buried. The good news is that there is another way to preserve dead bodies so that embalming fluids don’t need to be used. The deceased’s body can be refrigerated instead, which is a much better option for the environment.

Opting for an eco-friendly funeral can only be a good thing and is a wonderful legacy to leave behind.