Green Funeral

Going green is a common theme these days and green funerals are becoming more popular. This is a welcome sight for the funeral industry which has seen a reduction in the amount of revenue generated from traditional burial methods.  The funeral industry has had to adjust to become more nimble by offering an alternative or less traditional burial choice to their clients to stay competitive.  Funeral homes are beginning to see the advantages of becoming more "green" as more clients become more ecologically aware.  Another common theme in the funeral industry is that more people are choosing to be cremated as their burial wish and mainly because of cost or environmental concerns.  People today want to be eco, they want their memorial to be less expensive, and they want something less traditional.

A new form of green funeral has emerged that suits these growing trends flawlessly.  My Living Reef in San Diego is a non profit company that will place your ashes into an artificial reef that is then lowered into the ocean.  These reefs are designed to mimic the habitat of many different forms of sea life and unlike a cemetery plot; they are completely permanent.  These reefs are a quarter of the cost of traditional burials and they have significant ecological benefits.  These reefs reduce species extinction rates, enhance biodiversity, and help to restore our over fished oceans.  Because the company (My Living Reef) is a non profit, the reef is more of a sponsorship than a purchase and a portion of the cost of the reef is tax deducible.  This form of green burial or green funeral is the next ecological step for the funeral industry and a positive step in eliminating the ecologically harmful methods that have been traditionally used.