Natural burials still not an option in the city
A quarter of a century since asking the Palmerston North City Council to provide a place for natural burials, women’s health advocate Jean Hera has returned to repeat the request.
The Te Ha¯ o Hine-ahu-one Palmerston North Women’s Health Collective manager has asked the council’s environmental sustainability committee to recognise the need for an ecoburial cemetery for the city.
In a natural burial, the body is not embalmed, the shroud or casket is made of biodegradable materials, and the grave is shallower than the conventional ‘‘six feet under’’ to encourage decomposition.
Hera said the council had changed its Cemeteries and Crematorium Bylaw to allow for natural burials.
But she said she did not know whether further work had been done since that change more than five years ago. ‘‘We now need a site – it surely can’t be too difficult to implement as part of the current cemetery or, even better, if it was a standalone site or something for the region.’’
In 2015 the council had proposed using a site at Ashhurst, at Mccraes Bush on River Rd near the Pohangina River.
The idea was opposed by Ashhurst residents and was narrowly voted down by councillors without embarking on the process to designate the land for a cemetery.
The next option investigated was a section of the Kelvin Grove Cemetery. There were challenges there, with heavy clay soils that easily became water logged and were not suitable for the natural decomposition process unless other soils were brought in.
No-one at the recent committee meeting was able to update councillors on what further investigations, if any, had been carried out since 2017.
Natural Burials NZ lists nine certified natural cemeteries in New Zealand. The closest to Palmerston North are in taki and Makara, near Wellington.
Seven others, including one in Whanganui, use Natural Burials’ protocols, but are not fully certified.
Hera said she would like to see local resources and information available for people who wanted to make more natural choices regarding cardboard coffins, shrouds, and even a refrigerated under-blanket that allowed people to spend more time with the body of a loved one who was not embalmed.
Embalming fluids were bad for the environment, she said, and it was urgent for society to change its ways in dealing with death.
Her co-presenter, Te Whare o Nga¯ Wa¯hine Palmerston North Women’s Centre co-ordinator Krys Baker, said many people did not know about the choices available to them when they were bereaved.
Cr Rachel Bowen said it was time for the council to refresh its efforts. ‘‘It sits in a slightly bigger conversation now.’’
The committee has asked staff to investigate options and to report back.