For those who have lived a life dedicated to environmental responsibility, home funerals and green burials just make sense. Some ideas to include are:

  • bathing of the body using warm water and essential oils, such as lavender instead of "disinfecting" chemicals
  • keeping or bringing the body home for any legal mandatory waiting periods or visitation period to be kept cool without using large refrigeration units
  • not using toxic embalming chemicals or invasive embalming procedures
  • transporting the body to the crematory of cemetery in a home vehicle instead of a hearse or limousine 
Going Out Green
  • using locally grown flowers rather than hothouse or imported flowers
  • using personalized caskets and urns from locally grown native materials created by local artists and craftsmen
  • using imported caskets made from renewable resources such as bamboo and willow, unless the carbon footprint in getting it delivered is prohibitive
  • using shrouds made of biodegradable materials
  • digging graves by hand rather than by large machinery
  • eschewing cement, plastic, or metal outer burial vaults
  • using grave markers made of non-native stone or other materials
Join the Green Burial Movement in New Hampshire

The practice of burying without embalming, encasing in metal or rainforest wood caskets, and outer vaults - truly body to earth - is gaining momentum across the country. Many cemeteries are relaxing their policies; still others are being welcomed on conservation lands, giving families a pristine, natural environment in which to remember their loved one while supporting the preservation of intrinsically valuable lands in perpetuity.

If you are interested in helping to create the first green burial conservation cemetery in New Hampshire, send contact information and suggestions to:
TLHF, 10 Jacques Drive, Plymouth NH 03264
turningleafhomefunerals@gmail.com
(603) 236-9495