In a suburban warehouse tucked between an auto repair shop and a computer recycling business in Denver, Colorado, Seth Viddal is dealing with life and

Body composting a 'green' alternative to burial and cremation

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2021-09-26 05:00:22

In a suburban warehouse tucked between an auto repair shop and a computer recycling business in Denver, Colorado, Seth Viddal is dealing with life and death.

He and one of his employees have built a "vessel" they hope will usher in a more environmentally friendly era of mortuary science.

"It's a natural process where the body is returned to an elemental level over a short period of time," Mr Viddal said, likening the practice to backyard composting of food scraps.

"This is the same process but done with a human body inside of a vessel and, in our case, in a controlled environment," Mr Viddal said.

On September 7, Colorado became the second US state after Washington to allow human body composting. Oregon, further south, will allow the practice from July 2022.

"They're going to control the humidity. They're going to control the soil amendments, and hopefully some worms and some mushrooms find a good home in me for a few months."