Between 2025 and 2045, 1,095,800 people will pass away, according to BC’s Vital Statistics Agency projects With one of the highest cremation rates in North America, the trend indicates that over 850,000 of these people will choose cremation.
“How can our province accommodate these rising numbers while addressing the emotional needs of mourning families?”, asks Andrew Wong of Heritage Gardens. Given BC’s climate goals and scarcity of cemetery land, a promising solution is Natural Organic Reduction (NOR) according to Wong, which is an innovative body disposition method already legalized in twelve U.S. states since 2019. Designed for urban communities with limited space, NOR offers a gentle, environmentally friendly alternative to cremation and traditional burial.
What exactly is NOR?
NOR is a process that transforms a human body into nutrient-rich soil through a carefully managed, accelerated decomposition process. The body is placed in a vessel on a bed of organic materials such as wood chips, alfalfa straw, and sawdust. More of the same materials are placed on top of the deceased, with the straw performing as an insulator. Over the course of several weeks the resident gut flora break down the remains. This microbe activity causes a rise in temperature, reaching as high as 170 degrees fahrenheit.
By insulating the body in straw, it maintains these ideal conditions, enabling the flora to consume all soft tissues. When the temperature begins to drop, the facilitators remove the contents of the vessel to sift out surgical implants and reduce the bones to smaller fragments. The contents are returned to a smaller vessel that is fed with air flow, returning the remains to an ideal state for the microbes to break down the bone material while at the same time dehydrating all of the organic matter. The result is clean, fertile soil – akin to how nature has recycled organic matter for millennia but in a controlled and hygienic environment.
“The process takes about 8-12 weeks which generally lends to a healthy mourning time for the families,” says Wong. Some providers completely open up their facilities, so that clients may visit anytime and sit next to the vessel of their loved one; they may decorate it with letters or photos, or simply just sit and be present. Feedback has been positive about the time clients have had to contemplate and grieve their loss, by the time the family received the soil.
By the end of the process, the body has transformed into soil and poses no health risks. The soil is also tested for pathogens, ensuring that it is safe for use in nearly any setting. Just like full burial, there are rare circumstances that disqualify a body from undergoing NOR: Ebola or Creutzfeldt Jakob's disease, for example, may require that the remains are cremated instead.
“The interesting difference compared to cremation is that the amount of remains returned to the family totals approximately 300 lbs of soil,” adds Wong. American providers let clients choose to receive all of it or take a symbolic amount home; excess soil that is not collected by the family is often distributed in a state park through an arrangement with the local government.
“Considering this process does not take up a burial plot, and it has a smaller carbon footprint than flame cremation, perhaps NOR is the solution BC requires to meet the needs of our increasingly eco-conscious and growing population.”
Heritage Gardens wants to hear from you – should NOR be an option in BC?
Comment on Heritage Garden’s Facebook Page or send an email to info@hgcemetery.com.