The Five Principles of
Green Burial

Bodies are prepared for green burial without the use of embalming.
A body that is not embalmed can be prepared in a dignified and natural way for viewing and/or burial.
Ways to care for the body can include, cool rooms, refrigeration, and the use of environmentally sensitive soaps and make-up.
The body’s natural state permits the goal of unimpeded decomposition – the biological cycle of life.

The un-embalmed body is wrapped in a shroud or casket made of natural, biodegradable fibers and then buried directly in the grave.
Backboards should also be made of biodegradable materials.
Ideally, the shroud and/or casket will be locally sourced, as close as possible to the deceased’s place of death and green burial.
The body in a shroud or casket is buried directly in the ground.

No outside grave liner or protective vault is used; the body is buried directly in the earth.
Acknowledging provincial laws and cemetery bylaws regarding depth and size, we encourage a lighter impact by preparing shallower and smaller grave sizes.
The grave can be decorated with local greenery and cut flowers.
Family and friends are welcome to participate in the interment by lowering and/or filling in the grave.
Once a green burial has taken place, the surface of the grave is allowed to settle before being restored with locally indigenous species of grasses, flowering groundcovers, shrubs, and trees.

For green burial, memorialization should be simple and visually appropriate to the site. Communal memorialization: simple, basic inscriptions on naturally sourced materials is preferred. Alternatively, small, hand crafted, individual monuments may also be used, but these should be made of natural, preferably locally sourced materials.
Ultimately it is the green burial site as whole that becomes a living memorial to the persons interred there.

A well planned green burial cemetery (or cemetery section) will optimize the land it occupies.
Grave plantings are designed based on the natural landscape and ecosystem.
Cemetery design plans will include restoring land to natural habitat, minimal infrastructure such as temporary roads that can be removed and converted into interment lots, and operationally pragmatic grave dimensions.
Double-depth burials may be permitted where demand is high, and density is desirable to achieve more sustainable land use.
Where full body interment is not practical or possible, space within a green burial area may be designated for the interment of cremated remains.

Green burial in its simplest form – placing a body directly into the earth in a simple grave – is nothing new; in fact, it is the oldest form of human disposition and has been practiced by human civilization for many thousands of years. The modern green burial movement is more recent and has its roots in the United Kingdom.