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raynedanser t1_je6oqmr wrote

I work at a funeral home. Sadly, this is not legal at this time. There's green burials, but not many cemeteries that honor that faithfully.

There are also biodegradable cremation containers if you're interested.

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CptnAlex t1_je73sqa wrote

How possible is a tree burial in Maine, do you know?

I’m hopefully far off from death, but I find the idea of feeding a tree to be really comforting.

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Lissma t1_je76wki wrote

Tree pod burials are one of the several bills for alternate methods of disposition that will have a public hearing in the legislature tomorrow. The hearings start at 2.

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raynedanser t1_je7dcgs wrote

Thanks for beating me to it! :) We need more alternatives, especially as green burials gain in popularity.

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dedoubt t1_je8h8zt wrote

>We need more alternatives

Having a family burial plot on private property opens things up to some degree.

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raynedanser t1_je98ztp wrote

It does. There's still the formalities and paperwork, but it does help. The problem is ... What happens if the family sells or loses the property?

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dedoubt t1_je9pnmj wrote

As someone else commented, the family will always have access to the plot. Of course it could make selling the property more difficult, because the buyer cannot use or develop the burial area, and they have to allow family access to the graves permanently. The burial plot can't be more than 1/4 acre, so it's probably not that big of a deal in most cases.

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dedoubt t1_je8h41w wrote

>How possible is a tree burial in Maine, do you know?

If you own your own property, you can register a family burial plot with the town and county and bury your family at home.

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AnchoriteCenobite t1_je7ervn wrote

> There's green burials, but not many cemeteries that honor that faithfully.

As someone who is planning on a green burial, can you name any cemeteries in Maine who are doing it right? I was looking at Baldwin Hill in Fayette.

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raynedanser t1_je7frl0 wrote

What is your area and I can check at work tomorrow? There's one we've worked with a few times, but I just cannot think of the name at the moment.

PS- As someone that is mindful of the environment, I thank you for your interest in green burials.

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AnchoriteCenobite t1_je9m3mw wrote

I'm in the Oxford Hills area but I would be happy to be buried anywhere in Maine. Thanks for checking.

I've tried quite hard to have a relatively minimal environmental impact in my life, the last thing I want is for my death to produce a ton of CO2 or pollute the soil.

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raynedanser t1_je9mnvw wrote

Check out Rainbows End in Orrington. We've used them before.

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AnchoriteCenobite t1_jea2xmd wrote

Thanks, will do! Am probably going to take a little road trip soon to check these places out in person and see where I want to return to the land. :)

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raynedanser t1_jea5lw6 wrote

That's a wonderful idea. Again, thank you for being so kind to Mother Earth.

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Odeeum t1_je7cxtt wrote

What is your policy on a sky funeral?

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raynedanser t1_je7dhrb wrote

I'm not familiar with this. Sky funeral?

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Odeeum t1_je7doco wrote

Sorry, I should have provided a link:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sky_burial

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raynedanser t1_je7e37m wrote

No worries.

As far as I am aware, there is nothing in Maine that allows for this. Methods of disposition are cremation, burial with or without embalming, or donation to science. I'm not even sure where something like this would be set up. You wouldn't want this in your yard - decomposing bodies are nasty things.

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DudlyDjarbum t1_je7mxzx wrote

Also burial at sea is still available.

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raynedanser t1_je7owlu wrote

Good catch, thanks! I knew there was something else but it wasn't coming to me.

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mislysbb t1_je7kz54 wrote

You could have your body sent to a “body farm” where they put your body out in the open, and let nature take its course; all while having it documented/studied by a forensics team.

Sky burials are done because of Tibetan tradition, and honestly, even that as a tradition is dying out for various reasons. Not something that will ever take hold here in the US (nor should it, imo)

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Yourbubblestink t1_je6rkbq wrote

All burials are green in the end. That concrete vault you paid extra for will be filled with water in a year and that mahogany casket will be floating in it. There is so much bullshit involved in the funeral industry. In fact it’s all bullshit really.

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raynedanser t1_je715pf wrote

Every time i answer a funeral question, I'm attacked every single time like I'm somehow responsible for it. I'm not. Just answering a question, so move on instead of taking it out on me (anyone, not just you). And no, not all burials are green in the end. - the processes are completely different. You're still dead and buried in the end. But not green. No.

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lillianambrose t1_je7341n wrote

Yours is work that must be done, regardless of the condition of the industry. I’m sorry you’re treated like that.

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raynedanser t1_je7jzap wrote

Thank you, I appreciate this. It's the same idea as grieving families, I think. I'm a face to take frustrations out on. Grief can often make people act out of character, for sure.

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Yourbubblestink t1_je76us6 wrote

My intent was not to attack you but rather just to comment an industry that consists entirely of smoke and mirrors. It’s obviously an industry we need in some form

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raynedanser t1_je7d8dv wrote

I appreciate this. I understand it's an industry that is both not understood and necessary and a lot of people are pissy because they can't just open up a hole and drop Grampa in it. There's policies and procedures and due process to this whether people like it or not.

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Yourbubblestink t1_je7dru8 wrote

It never really occurred to me for some reason that people planning a funeral might be pissy toward the funeral director

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raynedanser t1_je7eabz wrote

More like ... Our staff are easy people to take out grief and frustrations on. We're trained to deal with grief and we're strangers, so some people can act out more than others. And some are just jerks and it's more evident when they're grieving. We're not your enemy and are actually trying to help you.

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Lissma t1_je77e9m wrote

Hey, you probably interact with me often professionally and I want to say the funeral directors in this state are awesome people and i love talking to them. A Massachusetts director got all in his feelings about me using the term "green burial" the other day and I'm like "chill out my guy I'm making conversation while I look up the information you want."

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raynedanser t1_je7dfdo wrote

It's very possible I do. :) Feel free to PM me if you wish. ;-)

We try. I'm not a director, I'm in the office, so I'm first line when someone calls us. I put up with a LOT of crap sometimes, but try to be patient because the people I'm dealing with have just had their world rocked and are trying their best to cope. Some people do it better than others.

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Lissma t1_je7gchu wrote

It's not letting me message you :/

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