What is Natural Burial?

Return to a simpler, more natural tradition.

Prior to contemporary, conventional cemeteries where graves are organized in carefully measured rows and marked by polished stone or cement headstones, there were natural burial grounds. There was no such thing as chemical embalming, varnished caskets with fancy linings, or concrete vaults. Natural or ‘green burial’ is a return to those traditions that provide a simple, less wasteful, non-toxic means of dedicating one’s physical form back to the earth to rejoin the soil with dignity and with minimal environmental impact.

Benefits of natural burial

Natural burial pays special attention to returning the body back to the earth in a safe way that is simple and natural, allows for greater family interaction, and is a more reasonable cost compared to conventional burial.

Environmentally-Friendly

Natural burial aids in the conservation of natural resources, reduction of carbon emissions, protection of worker health, and the restoration and/or preservation of habitats.

Simple

The loss of a loved one is one of the most difficult times in life, but it doesn’t have to be complicated. You can still honor your loved one without the overwhelming details and costs.

Affordable

Put your loved one to rest at a fraction of the cost of conventional burial.

Choice

An alternative to the current standard form of burial that is friendly to all aspects of a person’s life and to their memory.

What exactly does natural burial look like?

Hover over different parts of the diagram below to explore how natural burial works.

Standard Burial

Standard burials typically use formaldehyde embalming, long-lasting caskets, and pricey headstones.

Diagram comparing conventional burial to green burial

Natural Burial

The natural, or green, burial allows for only a biodegradable casket, shroud or urn which can help avoid the use of toxic chemicals, metal, and protects wildlife habitats and native plant communities. The depth of the grave is 3.5-4 feet, to stay inside the oxygenated portion of the ground, which aids in natural decomposition. Typically, there is no embalming, although the Green Burial Council allows specifically identified plant based fluids to be used.

The Green Burial Council certification standards only apply to full-body burial of human remains at a cemetery. They do not set standards for “reduction options” like flame cremation, aquamation, and human composting. These reduction processes are engineered to mimic or speed up the processes that occur naturally after death with non-renewable resources and some negative environmental impacts. See the Chart Below.

Final Disposition
(What happens to a body after death)

Comparison of Potential Environmental Benefits and Costs

Copyright Dr. Billy Campbell and Lee Webster, 2024

Method	Net Carbon Footprint	Full Expenditure	Amount of Leftover Product for Disposal	Land Acreage Protected	Enviro Costs or Benefits
Natural Burial (Conservation Burial)	Sequesters 25 lbs CO2 per burial, 10 tons per acre	Transportation to the cemetery	0	Unlimited Strategic component of a complete land conservation plan	Land protection Nutrient contributions to soil communities
Human Composting	Indeterminate greenhouse emissions	Sowing, watering, harvesting, processing, transporting of alfalfa, wood chips, bulking agents to facility; storage Construction, heating, cooling, maintenance of facility and its operating units Transporting of finished material	1+ cubic yard of leftover material 10-15 lbs pulverized bone (calcium phosphate and sodium, 11.8 pH, 200 – 2000 x what plants can tolerate)	0	Materials acquisition Facility maintenance Trucking of leftover materials Smothered plant and soil communities in surface disposal Restoration of depleted soil if intentionally tilled or incorporated
Alkaline Hydrolysis	150 to 200 lbs CO2 per person Most AH waste will be turned into carbon and nitrogenous GHG by public wastewater treatment facilities	Electricity or propane to heat 100 gallons of water under pressure 3-12 hours Processing and transportation of potassium hydroxide (lye)	100-300 gallons of effluent 10-15 lbs pulverized bone (calcium phosphate and sodium, 11.8 pH, 200-2000x what plants can tolerate)	0	Potential algae bloom from phosphorus run-off due to scattering Tree ringing (girdling) from burial close to tree roots Disposal of effluent (no state EPA has permitting)
Flame Cremation	250 to 536 lbs CO2 emissions per person Mercury, particulate emissions into air and waterways	Up to 500 gallons of fuel, usually natural gas, to burn @ 1700 to 2000° for 3-4 hours	7-10 lbs pulverized bone (calcium phosphate and sodium, 11.8 pH, 200 – 2000 x what plants can tolerate)	0	Potential algae bloom from phosphorus run-off Tree ringing from burial close to tree roots Mercury poisoning of air and water

For research-based information on environmentally responsible disposition options, see:
Cremation Curious https://vimeo.com/767868604
The Natural Burial Experience https://vimeo.com/769978957

Think natural burial may be the right fit?

Why not as part of your last act, enhance the environment, rather than impact it!

Contact Us

Get in touch

Phone

240-NATURAL
(240-628-8725)

Text

240-628-8725

natural@serenityridgemd.com

Cemetery Location

2406 Ridge Road
Windsor Mill, MD 21244

Gates open everyday from 7am-5pm
Appointment hours 9am-3pm

For any questions you may have, please feel free to contact us and someone will get back to you.

Send a Message

Schedule a Pre-Planning Appointment

Subscribe to our Newsletter

Sign up to receive updates about Serenity Ridge in your inbox.