Alkaline hydrolysis (also called biocremation, resomation, [1] [2] flameless cremation, [3] aquamation [4] or water cremation [5] ) is a process for the disposal of human and pet remains using lye and heat, and is an alternative to burial or cremation.
The process is based on alkaline hydrolysis: the body is placed in a pressure vessel that is then filled with a mixture of water and potassium hydroxide, and heated to a temperature around 160 °C (320 °F), but at an elevated pressure, which prevents boiling. Instead, the body is effectively broken down into its chemical components, which takes approximately four to six hours. A lower temperature and pressure may be used, but for a longer duration (98 °C (208 °F), 14 to 16 hours). [6] At the beginning of the process, the mixture is very alkaline, with a pH level of approximately 14; pH drops to 11 by the end, but the final pH level depends on the total operation time and the amount of fat in the body. [7]
| Pathogen | Temperature | Pressure | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Microbial | 212 °F 100 °C | 15 psi 100 kPa | 3 hours |
| TSE | 300 °F 149 °C | 70 psi 480 kPa | 6–8 hours |
The result is a quantity of green-brown tinted liquid (containing amino acids, peptides, sugars and salts) and soft, porous white bone remains (calcium phosphate) easily crushed in the hand (although a cremulator is more commonly used) to form a white-colored dust. The "ash" can then be returned to the next of kin of the deceased. The liquid is disposed of either through the sanitary sewer system, or through some other method, including use in a garden or green space. [8] To dispose of 1,000 pounds (450 kg) of biomass, approximately 60–240 US gallons (230–910 L; 50–200 imp gal) of water are used, resulting in 120–300 US gallons (450–1,140 L; 100–250 imp gal) of effluent, which carries a dried weight (inorganic and mineral content) of 20 pounds (9.1 kg) (approximately 2% of original weight). [7]
This alkaline hydrolysis process has been championed by a number of ecological campaigning groups, [9] for using 90 kWh of electricity, [10] one-quarter the energy of flame-based cremation, and producing less carbon dioxide and pollutants. [1] [5] It is being presented as an alternative option at some British crematorium sites. [11] As of August 2007 [update] , about 1,000 people had chosen this method for the disposal of their remains in the United States. [12] The operating cost of materials, maintenance, and labor associated with the disposal of 2,000 pounds (910 kg) of remains was estimated at $116.40, [7] excluding the capital investment cost of equipment.
Alkaline hydrolysis has also been adopted by the pet and animal industry. A handful of companies in North America offer the procedure as an alternative to pet cremation. [13] Alkaline hydrolysis is also used in the agricultural industry to sterilize animal carcasses that may pose a health hazard, because the process inactivates viruses, bacteria, and prions that cause transmissible spongiform encephalopathy. [7] [14] [15]
The process was patented by Amos Herbert Hobson in 1888 as a method to process animal carcasses into plant food. [6] [16] [10] In 2005, Bio-Response Solutions designed, sold, and installed the first single cadaver alkaline hydrolysis system at the Mayo Clinic, where it was still in use as of 2019. [17] In 2007, a Scottish biochemist, Sandy Sullivan, started a company making the machines, and calling the process (and company) Resomation. [18]
In Christian countries and cultures, cremation has historically been discouraged and viewed as a desecration of God's image, and as interference with the resurrection of the dead taught in scripture. It is now acceptable to some denominations. [19] Desmond Tutu, former Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town, was aquamated, per his wish. [20] The Eastern Orthodox Church does not allow cremation.
The Roman Catholic Church allows cremation of bodies as long as it is not done in denial of the beliefs in the sacredness of the human body or the resurrection of the dead. [21] In 2008, Renée Mirkes published the first Catholic moral analysis of alkaline hydrolysis. [22] [23] He argued that it is morally neutral and may be an alternative to burial on similar grounds to cremation. [23] However, the Catholic Church in the United States does not approve of alkaline hydrolysis as a method of final disposal of human remains. In 2011, Donald Cardinal Wuerl, Archbishop of Washington and then chairman of the Committee on Doctrine of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), determined it "unnecessarily disrespectful of the human body." [24] The Archdiocese of St. Louis explained that it was considered this way because the Church took concern with the final disposal of the liquid solution, which is typically to the sewer system. [25] This was considered disrespectful of the sanctity of the human body. [25] Additionally, when alkaline hydrolysis was proposed in New York state in 2012, the New York State Catholic Conference condemned the practice, stating that hydrolysis does not show sufficient respect for the teaching of the intrinsic dignity of the human body. [26]
Judaism forbids cremation as it is not in line with the religion’s teachings of respect and dignity for humans, who are believed by the religion to be created in God’s image. Islam also forbids cremation of the deceased. Both religions are likely to reject alkaline hydrolysis as they believe that the body must be laid to rest through burial in order to prepare for the afterlife. [22] The Bahá'í Faith, like other Abrahamic religions, discourages cremation of the deceased. The human body is seen as having to be treated with respect, and merely wrapped in a shroud before burial no further than an hour from the place of death.
Sikhism, Hinduism, and Buddhism each place theological emphasis on the burning of the corpse which may prevent alkaline hydrolysis from replacing cremation. [22]
Native Hawaiians consider aquamation a way to approximate their traditional burial ritual, which involves removing the bones (iwi) cleanly from the flesh using a beachside underground oven (imu), wrapping the bones, and hiding them. The use of an imu on human bodies is no longer allowed, but aquamation may offer an alternative as it produces similarly clean bones. [27]
Aquamation based in New South Wales is the only company to provide alkaline hydrolysis in Australia, with the remains being used as fertilizer on plantation forests, due to difficulty with obtaining permits from Sydney Water. [28]
The Flemish minister of Interior Administration Bart Somers asked in September 2021 the opinion of an advisory bioethics committee on resomation. The advice, received in November 2021, saw no objections. [29]
Saskatchewan approved the process in 2012, becoming the first province to do so. [30] Quebec and Ontario have also legalized the process. [31] A funeral home in Granby, Quebec, was the first in the province to receive an alkaline hydrolysis machine. [32]
In 2023, water cremation became available in Ireland, making it the first country in Europe to offer this form of burial. [33]
When the process is complete, the remaining water undergoes further treatment to ensure that it is completely sterile. Analysis is then completed to ensure Water Authority standards are met. At this stage, the water can be recycled back to the Local Authority water treatment plant.
Since 2019, Grupo Gayosso offers alkaline hydrolysis in Baja California. [34]
In May 2020, the Health Council of the Netherlands issued an advisory report on the admissibility of new techniques of disposing of the dead. The Council proposed a framework to assess alkaline hydrolysis. It concluded that alkaline hydrolysis is safe, dignified and sustainable. [35] In addition to alkaline hydrolysis, the council also considered human composting as a technique to dispose bodies yet concluded that too little is known about composting and hence it cannot be assessed whether this technique fulfills the conditions. [35] Taking into account the council's recommendations, the Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations prepared a law proposal to amend the Corpse Disposal Act. Once the proposed law has been submitted to the Parliament, the democratic process to admit alkaline hydrolysis as body disposal technique can be commenced.
In November 2019, Avbob introduced aquamation in South Africa, following the mutual assurance society's recent introduction of the alkaline hydrolysis process at its Maitland agency in Cape Town. [36] Aquamation has been legal in South Africa since then. Following his death in December 2021 the body of Archbishop Desmond Tutu was aquamated. [20]
A public crematorium operated by Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council at Rowley Regis, central England, was the first to receive planning permission to offer the process but in March 2017, the local water utility, Severn Trent Water, refused the council's application for a "trade effluent permit" because there was no water industry standard regulating the disposal of liquefied human remains into sewers. [37] [38]
In July 2023, the BBC reported that “[w]ater cremation is set to be made available for the first time in the UK.” [39]
Alkaline hydrolysis as a method of final disposition of human remains is legal in 24 states as of 2022 [update] . [5] [40] Legislation is pending in New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. [41] [42] The process was legal in New Hampshire for several years but amid opposition by religious lobby groups it was banned in 2008 [43] and a proposal to legalize it was rejected in 2013. [44] [45] Alkaline hydrolysis has been used for cadavers donated for research at the University of Florida since the mid-1990s and at the Mayo Clinic [1] since 2005. [46] UCLA uses the process to dispose of donor bodies. [2]
| State | Policy | Year | Legislation | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama |  | 2017 | H-212 | Added definition of alkaline hydrolysis. | [47] |
| Arizona | | 2022 | HB2024 | Approved alkaline hydrolysis licensure. | [48] |
| California | | 2017 | AB967 | Alkaline hydrolysis has been used at UCLA since 1995 for donated cadavers. Previously, AB 1615 (2012) was advanced and passed the Assembly, but died in Senate. | [49] [50] |
| Colorado | | 2011 | HB11-1178 | [51] | |
| Connecticut | | 2016 | SSB 142 | Available. | [52] |
| Florida | | 2010 | SB1152 | In use at the University of Florida since the mid-1990s. | [53] [54] |
| Georgia | | 2012 | HB933 | SB296 pending in House to remove conflicting language. | [55] [56] |
| Hawaii | | 2022 | HB1894 | Signed into law July, 2022 | [57] |
| Idaho | | 2014 | Docket 24-0801-1301 | Adopted in a docket amending the Rules of the State Board of Morticians, but not available. | [58] [59] |
| Illinois | | 2012 | SB1830 | Enacted as Public Act 97–0679. Available. | [60] |
| Kansas | | 2010 | HB2310 | Amended K.S.A. 65–1760 to define cremation as "the mechanical and/or other dissolution process that reduces human remains to bone fragments." Unavailable except KCMO. | [61] |
| Maine | | 2009 | 144 CMR 244 | Available. | [62] |
| Maryland | | 2011 | HB995 | Added definition for cremation as "the process of reducing human remains to bone fragments through intense heat and evaporation, including any mechanical or thermal process." Unavailable within state. | [63] |
| Minnesota | | 2003 | SF1071 | In use at the Mayo Clinic since 2005. Available. | [64] |
| Missouri | | ? | ? | 20 CSR 2120–2.071 does not prohibit alkaline hydrolysis in the definition of cremation. | |
| Nevada | | 2017 | AB205 | Available. | [65] |
| New Hampshire |  | 2008 | SB332 | Approved from 2006–2008; Legislation to reinstate approval was rejected in 2013. | [45] |
| North Carolina | | 2018 | GS 90-210.136 | Available. | [66] |
| Oklahoma | | 2021 | Title 59 Sec.396.2 | Approved 2021, available as of 2023 | [67] |
| Oregon | | 2009 | SB796 | Added "dissolution" to the definition of final disposal. Available. | [68] |
| Tennessee | | 2013 | HB1125 | Availability unclear. | [69] |
| Texas | | 2017 | HB1155 | Bill died in committee. | [70] |
| Utah | | 2018 | HB0121 | Available at least one location. | [71] |
| Vermont | | 2014 | H.656 | Enacted as Act No. 138 but unavailable. | [72] |
| Virginia | | 2023 | SB1487 | Senate Bill passed, pending in House committee | [42] |
| Washington | | 2020 | SB 5001 | Available. | [73] |
| Wyoming | | 2014 | HB25 | Enrolled Act No. 21 adds definition for "chemical disposition." However, unavailable as of 2022. | [74] |
A funeral is a ceremony connected with the final disposition of a corpse, such as a burial or cremation, with the attendant observances. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember and respect the dead, from interment, to various monuments, prayers, and rituals undertaken in their honour. Customs vary between cultures and religious groups. Funerals have both normative and legal components. Common secular motivations for funerals include mourning the deceased, celebrating their life, and offering support and sympathy to the bereaved; additionally, funerals may have religious aspects that are intended to help the soul of the deceased reach the afterlife, resurrection or reincarnation.
Cremation is a method of final disposition of a dead body through burning.
Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objects in it, and covering it over. A funeral is a ceremony that accompanies the final disposition. Evidence suggests that some archaic and early modern humans buried their dead. Burial is often seen as indicating respect for the dead. It has been used to prevent the odor of decay, to give family members closure and prevent them from witnessing the decomposition of their loved ones, and in many cultures it has been seen as a necessary step for the deceased to enter the afterlife or to give back to the cycle of life.
A lye is an alkali metal hydroxide. Traditionally it was obtained by using rainwater to leach wood ashes, which are strongly alkaline and highly soluble in water, of their potassium hydroxide (KOH), producing lye water, a caustic basic solution. Then the lye water would either be used as such, as for curing olives before brining them, or evaporated of water to leave crystalline lye behind. "Lye" most accurately refers to sodium hydroxide (NaOH), but historically has been conflated to include other alkali materials, most notably potassium hydroxide.
Burial at sea is the disposal of human remains in the ocean, normally from a ship, boat or aircraft. It is regularly performed by navies, and is done by private citizens in many countries.
The Tri-State Crematory scandal was a scandal at a crematorium in the Noble community in northwest Georgia that came to national attention in 2002. It was discovered that nearly three hundred and forty bodies that had been consigned to the crematory for proper disposition had not been cremated, but instead dumped at several locations in and around the crematorium's site. This led to civil litigation and criminal prosecutions.
A pyre, also known as a funeral pyre, is a structure, usually made of wood, for burning a body as part of a funeral rite or execution. As a form of cremation, a body is placed upon or under the pyre, which is then set on fire.
Disposal of human corpses, also called final disposition, is the practice and process of dealing with the remains of a deceased human being. Disposal methods may need to account for the fact that soft tissue will decompose relatively rapidly, while the skeleton will remain intact for thousands of years under certain conditions.
Natural burial is the interment of the body of a dead person in the soil in a manner that does not inhibit decomposition but allows the body to be naturally recycled. It is an alternative to typical contemporary Western burial methods and modern funerary customs.
Cremation is a method used to dispose of the deceased in the Christian world despite historical opposition to the practice.
Death is dealt with differently in cultures around the world, and there are ethical issues relating to death, such as martyrdom, suicide and euthanasia. Death refers to the permanent termination of life-sustaining processes in an organism, i.e. when all biological systems of a human being cease to operate. Death and its spiritual ramifications are debated in every manner all over the world. Most civilizations dispose of their dead with rituals developed through spiritual traditions.
A crematorium or crematory is a venue for the cremation of the dead. Modern crematoria contain at least one cremator, a purpose-built furnace. In some countries a crematorium can also be a venue for open-air cremation. In many countries, crematoria contain facilities for funeral ceremonies, such as a chapel. Some crematoria also incorporate a columbarium, a place for interring cremation ashes.
The Funeral Rule, enacted by the Federal Trade Commission on April 30, 1984, and amended effective 1994, is a U.S. federal regulation designed to protect consumers by requiring that they receive adequate information concerning the goods and services they may purchase from a funeral provider.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and a topical guide to death:
Caitlin Marie Doughty is an American mortician, author, blogger, YouTuber, and advocate for death acceptance and the reform of Western funeral industry practices. She is the owner of Clarity Funerals and Cremation of Los Angeles, creator of the Web series Ask a Mortician, founder of The Order of the Good Death, and author of three bestselling books, Smoke Gets in Your Eyes & Other Lessons from the Crematory (2014), From Here to Eternity; Traveling the World to Find the Good Death (2017), and Will My Cat Eat My Eyeballs?: Big Questions from Tiny Mortals About Death (2019).
Anderson-McQueen Company is a privately owned funeral home headquartered in St. Petersburg, Florida. It is owned and operated by the second-generation McQueen family and serves Florida's Hillsborough and Pinellas Counties region with six service facilities. Anderson-McQueen is the first funeral home in the United States to practice flameless cremation.
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Cremation in Japan was originally practiced by monks seeking to emulate the cremation of the Buddha. Virtually all deceased are now cremated in Japan – as of 2012, it had the highest cremation rate in the world of over 99.9%. The Meiji government attempted to ban the practice in the 19th century, but the ban was only in effect for less than two years.
Human composting is a process for the final disposition of human remains in which microbes convert a deceased body into compost. It is also called natural organic reduction (NOR) or terramation.
Water burial may refer to:
Cremation was unheard of from the time Charlemagne outlawed it (784) until the 17th century. At that point, the practice was urged primarily by those opposed to the church, and for a long time cremation was forbidden by Roman Catholicism and practiced only reluctantly by Protestants. Recently, these strictures have eased, and more and more churches have established columbaria or memorial gardens within their precincts for the reception of the ashes by the faithful.
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