Proposal would let Arizonans make garden mulch from dearly departed

It’s not quite ashes to ashes. But there’s an element of dust to dust in proposed legislation to allow Arizonans to make garden mulch out of the dearly departed.

Legislation awaiting debate in the full Arizona House would allow companies to offer “natural organic reduction’’ as an alternative to burial or traditional cremation.

As with cremation, the family would get back the remains. But this process produces what amounts to mulch.

“The family can then use the soil to plant a tree,’’ lobbyist Jake Hinman told lawmakers. “They can plant the grieving family’s favorite flowers.’’

Then, in the spring when those flowers bloom, “there’s a tremendous sort of spiritual connection for these grieving families,’’ he said.

Hinman, lobbyist for National Organic Reduction of Arizona, which wants to start offering the process here, said it uses add-ins that are all-natural, including organic materials such as alfalfa or other items that provide nitrogen and carbon.

“Then heat and oxygen are also added to simply accelerate that microbial breakdown,’’ he said.

“So, over the course of about 30 days, the body is mostly reduced and then it’s sifted out,’’ to take out screws or other foreign objects in the body, Hinman said.

Traditional cremation essentially leaves the crushed bones, but with this process, “The smaller bones, believe it or not, are able to be reduced down,’’ he explained.

The larger bones are crushed, using the same mechanical process as a regular cremation, and mixed back into the soil.

“All that added calcium is great for the soil,’’ Hinman said.

Only thing is, while that procedure is legal in seven states, Hinman said anyone who tries to do “natural reduction’’ in Arizona now would violate state law.

Acceptable in Arizona are traditional burial, donation for science or medicine, or cremation, as it’s commonly understood.

Cremation is defined in state law as the heating process “that reduces human remains to bone fragment by combustion and evaporation.’’

More recently, Arizona lawmakers approved a process called “alkaline hydrolysis.’’ That’s a variant on cremation, where a body is reduced to its “essential elements’’ using a solution of water, alkaline chemicals, heat, agitation and pressure, all to accelerate the normal decomposition process.

In both cases, what the family gets back are ashes that can be buried, scattered or kept in a container.

It’s what’s left over that House Bill 2081 proposes to change.

“It’s oftentimes met with a little intrigue, maybe with a little surprise,’’ Hinman told lawmakers. That then leads to more questions and, sometimes, a desire to know more and possibly choose that as an option, he said.

He said the fact that seven states have adopted this — and that his client wants to get into the business here — shows there is some demand.

There certainly was curiosity shown by the Arizona lawmakers who’ve heard the bill so far.

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Rep. Kevin Payne, R-Peoria, questioned how much would be left. Hinman said it comes down to about a cubic yard — three feet by three feet by three feet — because it also includes all the organic material added to accelerate the process.

“Very intriguing,’’ Payne said.

But there’s a practical consideration: How to handle what’s left.

After all, unlike other processes that get rid of much of the liquid in the body, this keeps everything. That means what families end up with includes not just the weight of the dearly departed but also the weight of everything else added.

So think about getting not just an urn with ashes but some kind of container weighing 200 pounds or more. That presents logistical questions, Hinman acknowledged, that families will have to answer when deciding if this is the way to go.

“Families can pick up the soil if they have a large enough vehicle,’’ he said.

Then there’s the question of whether someone has use for that much soil.

Hinman said the state of Washington has a program where the remains can be donated and used on reforestation and similar projects.

Rep. Cory McGarr suggested that the legislation be dubbed “The Circle of Life.’’

“I’m a child of the ’90s,’’ said the Marana lawmaker. “And I remember ‘The Lion King’.’’

That refers to a talk Mufassa had with tiny Simba, his son.

“When we die, our bodies become the grass, and the antelope eat the grass,’’ Mufassa said. “And so we are all connected to the great Circle of Life.’’

Movie references aside, Hinman told McGarr he was “connecting on the value of this.’’

“There are a lot of folks that feel that sort of spiritual connection of going back to earth and allowing their body to become one with it,’’ he said.

That was enough for HB 2018 to get unanimous approval of the House Committee on Regulatory Affairs this past week and advance to the full House. An identical measure, Senate Bill 1042, sponsored by Sen. T.J. Shope, R-Coolidge, is awaiting action this week in the Senate Committee on Finance and Commerce.

There is a cost, of course, for those who choose “natural organic reduction.’’

Hinman estimates the process will set families back about $5,000. That compares with standard cremation which, without extras like viewing, services and certain containers, can come in under $1,000.

As to a standard burial, all that depends on what a family wants. Plus, there are costs for embalming, which is not legally necessary, and the casket, which can be the most expensive element.

Funeralocity.com puts the average cost of a full-service burial in Arizona at $7,654. That doesn’t include the cemetery plot.