Honoring Life in Harmony with Nature

Less harmful to the environment

The opportunity to return to nature

Less financial impact

Many families choose cremation not only for its simplicity but also for its gentler impact on the environment. Unlike traditional burials, cremation does not require land space, embalming chemicals, or long-term maintenance of a gravesite. This reduces the use of natural resources and helps minimize environmental disruption. For those who wish, cremated remains can also be incorporated into eco-friendly memorials such as tree plantings or biodegradable urns, allowing a loved one’s memory to be honored in a way that gives back to the earth

"Burial involves

CO2 emissions equivalent to

3.6 Cremations."

Environmental Impact: Cremation vs. Burial

We know families want to make choices that honor their loved one while also caring for the world they leave behind. Understanding the environmental impact of cremation, burial, and emerging alternatives can help you choose the option that feels most meaningful and responsible.

 

Traditional Burial

  • Uses toxic embalming fluids (over 2.5 million gallons annually in the U.S.)
  • Consumes hardwood, concrete, steel, copper, and bronze
  • Requires long-term land use and upkeep
  • Risk of soil and groundwater contamination

Cremation

  • Produces ~400 kg of CO₂ per process
  • Requires no land or long-term maintenance
  • Fewer risks of toxic leakage or contamination
  • Overall smaller footprint than traditional burial

Greener Alternatives

  • Electric cremation and low-emission systems
  • Alkaline hydrolysis (“water cremation”)
  • Eco-friendly memorial options (biodegradable urns, tree planting)
Learn about Alkaline Hydrolysis
Alkaline Hydrolysis, sometimes called ‘water cremation,’ is one of the most environmentally friendly alternatives to traditional burial and flame cremation. The process uses a gentle combination of water, heat, and alkali to return the body to its natural elements, without the need for flames or fossil fuels. Compared to flame cremation, it uses about one-eighth of the energy and reduces greenhouse gas emissions by up to 90%. It also avoids releasing mercury and other harmful emissions into the atmosphere, making it a safer choice for the environment. 

Families who choose alkaline hydrolysis can take comfort in knowing their loved one is honored in a way that leaves a lighter footprint on the earth. However, this option is not yet legal for human use in Texas, though it is permitted in a growing number of other states. At this time, it is available for pets in certain areas, offering families an eco-friendly way to honor their beloved companions.

Are Cremated Remains Bad For The Lake?

Cremated remains contain harmless minerals that are mostly dry calcium phosphates with some minor minerals, such as salts of sodium and potassium. Most of the sulfur and carbon are burned off as oxidized gases during the cremation process with a relatively small amount of carbon remaining as carbonate.


These minerals cause no harm to the water or the water life. The ashes will scatter throughout the water with no adverse effects as a coarse, gritty, sand-like substance. Cremated remains must be scattered or buried in biodegradable urns that will dissolve in the water and spread the remains, or you can scatter the remains by sprinkling them into the water.