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The governor of New York, Kathy Hokul, on Saturday approved the use of human corpses for the preparation of Copemust.
The legislative move makes the state the sixth to do so since 2019 and gives New Yorkers access to an alternative, green burial method that is considered environmentally friendly.
However, the procedure is not that simple.
The remains of the body must be handed over to a cemetery corporation that allows burial in a designated and properly ventilated facility, which does not contain a "battery, battery case, power cell, radioactive implant or radioactive device".
A cemetery in New York.
The move will save concrete boxes and fancy cabinets (Photo: Reuters, Reuters)
In most cases, the body of the deceased is placed in a reusable, semi-open container containing a suitable substrate - wood shavings, alfalfa or straw - that are ideal for microbes to do their work.
At the end of the process, a dense soil full of nutrients is produced, which is equivalent to 36 bags of fertilizer.
"Anything we can do to get people away from concrete boxes and fancy coffins — we should support it," said Michelle Menter, director of Greensprings Natural Cemetery Preserve in central New York.
Manter said her business would strongly consider the method.
Washington is the first state to make human composting legal in 2019, followed by Colorado and Oregon in 2021, then Vermont and California later in 2022.
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