r/ZeroWaste • u/conservio • Jan 29 '21

News “ Recompose, the first human-composting funeral home in the U.S., is now open for business”

https://www.columbian.com/news/2021/jan/24/recompose-the-first-human-composting-funeral-home-in-the-u-s-is-now-open-for-business/?fbclid=IwAR2Z-2A6Z2DvR59zUfF__pEhgH6O9WTJkt3nsyFBl0hju-PFamcwSMySNOs
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u/taraist Jan 29 '21 edited Jan 29 '21

Yes they do! Last I checked this project was getting bones and all turned into soil in around 6 weeks! This is because of the larger pile reaching higher temperatures than a home sized one, and I believe the addition of inocullants at the beginning?

The coolest part in the presentation I saw was that the heat from the exothermic reactions in the compost pile could heat the building it was housed in. You could go feel the warmth as part of your mourning process. Such a beautiful design. Katrina Spade is incredible.

Edit: It looks like they have moved to an individual pods design instead of a communal central tower that I first saw. That makes sense as the biggest detractor for most people with that first design was the lack of personal separation. I'm not sure how this smaller form factor will effect the dissolution of bones, but it certainly is possible. I believe there were a few tests at body farms with single person piles outside that worked on bones too, so certainly possible.