Final Dispositions

Traditional Burial

The most common practice in the U.S. involves the preparation of the body with embalming fluids and its placement in a casket. The casket is then interred in a cemetery grave, which usually requires a concrete or steel vault to maintain the ground's integrity over time. This method provides a permanent, physical location for survivors to visit and memorialize their loved ones, though it involves a higher environmental footprint due to the use of chemicals and non-biodegradable materials.

This process uses high heat and flame to reduce human remains to bone fragments, commonly referred to as ashes or cremains. The body is placed in a specialized chamber called a retort, where combustion takes place over several hours. Once the process is complete, any metal hardware is removed, and the remaining bone fragments are processed into a uniform powder. It is widely chosen for its lower cost and the flexibility it offers for scattering, interment in a columbarium, or keeping the remains in a decorative urn.

Often called human composting, this disposition transforms human remains into a regenerative living soil. The terramation process occurs in a vessel that is located in an environmentally-controlled facility. Over the course of a few months, Mother Nature’s natural microbial activity converts the body into a rich, organic, life-giving soil. The temperature in the vessel naturally rises during the transformation process, which sterilizes and stabilizes the contents while the conversion takes place. Once the process is complete, about 400 cubic feet of soil remains. This can be returned to families, donated to farms, or a combination of the two. It is not recommended that it be used to grow food for human use.

Water cremation, also known as alkaline hydrolysis, is a form of cremation with a much smaller environmental impact than flame cremation. It uses a bathtub of warm water with alkaline compounds to do what would occur naturally with a green burial when the body is placed into the Earth. It has been legal in Colorado since 2011.