MICANOPY, Fla. (AP) — A feathery afternoon rain sweeps across the tall grass and clusters of oak forest here, adding an extra layer of hush to this wilderness preserve that’s also a resting place for the dead.

The 75 or so individuals buried at Prairie Creek Conservation Cemetery have one distinction in common: They or their families cared enough about Florida’s environment to consecrate their bodies to a natural cycle that will keep these 78 acres and their surroundings free of development and manufactured chemicals for as long as human law can protect them.