Colorado buried the remains of the first “legally composted” person after composting human remains was given the green light by lawmakers.
The first person to have his or her remains composted was laid to rest in Fremont County, Colorado, on Sunday as an alternative to a traditional funeral and a step toward what some see as a more environmentally friendly option to traditional cemeteries.
“I think this is the first time anything quite like this has happened, certainly in Colorado, maybe anywhere,” The Natural Funeral owner Seth Viddal told 9 News.
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The remains of the person, who is unidentified, were placed into a large container filled with dirt and compost. The body was then left there to undergo six months of decomposition before turning it into soil and spreading across the land.
“They were laid in as a beloved, and they will lay out as a living soil gift back to this preserve,” Viddal said. “It will nourish the land that’s here. It will be a foundation for the seeds that we’re mixing into that soil today. It’ll be the foundation of life here forever.”
The soil made from the remains had flower and grass seeds mixed into it and was given back to the Earth during the spring equinox. The ceremony was performed at the Colorado Burial, an alternative site to a traditional cemetery. Several dozen people attended the event.
“The cycle of life is truly going to continue as a result of what is happening today,” Viddal said. “More than anything, this proves that we can do this. That this can be very meaningful to families. That this can be a very sacred way to deal with a loved one following loss.”
The Natural Funeral is the first funeral home in Colorado to offer body composting options as an alternative to cremation or burial.
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Colorado passed a law in September 2021 to allow remains to be composted at the deceased’s request. It is the second state in the United States, behind Washington, to legalize what some see as a more environmentally friendly alternative.
The burial of human remains has become a contested topic among environmentalists concerned about the long-term impact of burying human remains in cemeteries. While some have opted for cremation to avoid overfilling a cemetery, others have attempted to minimize their carbon footprint through a “natural burial,” which allows the body to decompose into the dirt over several years.
