Undertakers in Belgium plan to eschew traditional burials and cremations and start dissolving corpses instead.
The move is intended to tackle a lack of burial space and environmental concerns as 573lbs of carbon dioxide are released by each cremated corpse.
Lovely. There's more!
The machine is filled with a mixture of water and potassium hydroxide.
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 which are easily crushed.
The white ash can then be returned to the next of kin of the deceased.
The liquid can be recycled back to the ecosystem by being applied to a memorial garden or forest or simply put into the sewerage system.
Yikes! I'm not sure I'm cold-hearted enough to flush the essence of Grandpa down the sewer.
Me? You can cram my earthly remains into a nook of a rocket and shoot me into space. Yee haw!
I read about this in the book Stiff. Which is a freaking AWESOME book, btw.
ReplyDeleteGood read!
'573lbs of carbon dioxide are released by each cremated corpse.'
ReplyDeleteUtter BS.
Even if the human body was totally carbon, the required weight of that carbon would be 191 lbs, combining with 346 lbs of oxygen (CO-2) to get that figure.
There is absolutely no way that the average human body weighs 191 lbs.
So this is simply more 'green' shit from ecological liars.
IF perchance, they are including the weight of a wooden coffin, then they are trying to have it both ways, as part of the 'split wood, not atoms' propaganda is that burning wood releases no more CO-2 than allowing it to rot naturally.
ReplyDeleteAll in all, it is nothing more than a gaggle of eco-illogical assholes making a statement but with nothing to say.
O-M-G!
ReplyDeleteWell, I guess it's no worse than cremation, if you stop and think about it. lady red, I had to laugh at your rocket comment and yeehaw! It made me think of George Carlin who wanted to be blown up :-) I don't think he got his wish.
And on a side note, afw, speaking of books...I've been scarce lately because I'm all tuckered out from working outside and the rest of my time I'm devouring Game Change!! Yes, I finally cracked the cover and I can't put it down, it is sooooo juicy!! Right now I'm reading about the oh-so-scummy Edwardses. Good Lord in Heaven, what an pair, eh?
I'm so glad you recommended it, I keep telling Tom "you're going to LOVE this book!".