Article on Liquid Cremation
Respect for the dead is part of an unwritten standard of morality, but just how far does that respect go? In an increasingly urbanized world in which the value of land constantly rises, does digging up and consolidating graves cross the line as disrespectful? What about offering rooms in a corpse hotel where guests can wait for their turn at the crematory? Where does that rank? And what about new mechanical disposal methods? Are they too cold or ghoulish to be a respectful means of sending off our family; members and loved ones? Regardless of your answers to these questions, it is well-defined that after thousands of years of human existence, two methods predominate as the accepted methods for disposing of human corpses: burial and cremation. But must it always be that way?
Recently in Great Britain, corpses buried more than a century ago are being dug up and transferred into double-decker graves to make room for new occupants in otherwise full cemeteries. Legislation there allows for the consolidation of graves under special permits and subject to certain regulations. While the thought of exhuming corpses to create more burial space may sound disrespectful to some, the underlying issue is that land is a limited commodity.In reality, if every human being who ever lived on this earth were given his or her own burial plot, at some point the dead would crowd the living right off the earth.
Meanwhile, Japanese entrepreneurs are resorting to innovative tactics to deal with growing crematory queues, which result from Japan’s aging population and increasing death rate. The Japanese funeral industry has not been able to meet the demand on the nation’s crematories. As a result, one man opened a corpse hotel in Tokyo where up to eighteen deceased guests can wait in refrigerated coffins for their turn at the crematory. Although an innovative solution to the shortage of crematories in urban Japan, this hotel can hardly be the best solution the funeral industry can create.An alternative to consolidated graves and hotels for the dead exists: alkaline hydrolysis, the environmentally friendly alternative for corpse disposal.
Is it surprising that concern for the environment has led to a new method of corpse disposal? In a world filled with new ideas and evolving technologies, will alkaline hydrolysis soon rival the traditional methods of corpse disposal? All speculation aside, for those who are concerned about their environmental footprint, this new method of corpse disposal purports to ensure that even in death they can lessen their impact on the environment. However, some critics think a method that reduces a body to greenish-brown liquid and crumbly bones is disrespectful or even ghoulish, regardless of the purported environmental benefits.
This comment will review alkaline hydrolysis, the so-called “liquid cremation,” in light of the predominate methods of corpse disposal: burial and cremation. Part II will begin with an overview of the evolving perceptions of burial and cremation in Western society. Part III will introduce the emerging method of corpse disposal known as alkaline hydrolysis. Part IV will look at the seven states that have already approved the use of alkaline hydrolysis. Part V will look at the opposition to the process raised in Ohio and New Hampshire. Part VI will look at the states that, to varying degrees, have begun reviewing statutory language in light of alkaline hydrolysis. Part VII will discuss the state of corpse disposal in Texas and suggest lessons that Texas can learn from the states that have previously debated the propriety of alkaline hydrolysis. Finally, Part VIII will conclude that alkaline hydrolysis belongs alongside burial and cremation as an acceptable method for corpse disposal.