Resomation
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Resomation is a specific alkaline hydrolysis process for the disposal of human remains, which is claimed by its creators to be much more ecologically favourable than cremation. The process is being marketed worldwide as an alternative to the traditional options of burial or cremation. As at the summer of 2007 it is claimed that more than 1,000 people have been resomated in the United States of America.[1]
Most sources cite the British company 'Resomation Limited' as the driving force behind the procedure; the company has a pending patent on the procedure and owns the international trademark on the world "Resomator".
In resomation the body is placed in a silk bag, itself placed within a metal cage frame. This is then loaded into a Resomator. The machine is filled with a mixture of water and potassium hydroxide (roughly 500l of water and 20l of hydroxide), and heated to a high temperature (around 160 degrees Celsius), but at a high pressure, which prevents boiling. Instead, the body is effectively dissolved into its chemical components and ash, which takes about three hours..
The end result is a small 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-coloured dust. The white ash can then be returned to the next of kin of the deceased. The liquid is recycled back to the ecosystem for example by being applied to a memorial garden or forest.
The Resomation process is currently being championed by a number of ecological campaigning groups,[2] for using less energy and producing less carbon dioxide and pollutants than cremation. It is being presented as an alternative option at some British crematorium sites.[3] The process is currently legal in Minnesota, USA, where a similar process is being used to dispose of donated bodies at the Mayo Clinic.[4] The process was legal in New Hampshire, USA until a recent 1 year moratorium was imposed on the legislation to allow the technology claims to be studied and validated before public use. A commercial Resomator is about to be installed at a Florida funeral home where the process is also legal.[4]
[edit] References
- ^ "UK firm: Don't burn bodies, boil them", Physorg News, 2007-08-06, http://www.physorg.com/news105641250.html
- ^ The Groovy Green website is one example of such sites.
- ^ See the October 2007 Newsletter of Worthing Crematorium, operated by Worthing Borough Council in West Sussex, England.
- ^ a b Ruth Davis Konigsberg (2009-12-13), "The Ninth Annual Year in Ideas: Resomation", The New York Times Magazine, http://www.nytimes.com/projects/magazine/ideas/2009/#r-3
[edit] External links
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