Alkaline hydrolysis (body disposal)

Alkaline hydrolysis is an alternative to cremation or burial. The process accelerates traditional decomposition using water, alkaline chemicals, heat, and sometimes pressure. Human bones become mineral ash. The rest of the body forms a liquid of organic compounds. Like cremation, alkaline hydrolysis costs less than burial and loved ones may keep the dry remains. However, alkaline hydrolysis uses less energy, produces fewer emissions, and preserves more of the person’s remains than cremation. In the twenty-first century, alkaline hydrolysis is becoming popular. Anti-apartheid leader Desmond Tutu, who died in December 2021, chose alkaline hydrolysis because he wanted to dispose of his remains in an environmentally friendly, affordable way.

Not all states in America allow alkaline hydrolysis. This is mainly because people are uncomfortable with the liquid going into wastewater treatment facilities or believe that the liquid will endanger the water supply, causing higher pH levels. Catholic leaders oppose the process because they feel that it does not dignify the human body.

Alkaline hydrolysis is also called AH, flameless cremation, water cremation, green cremation, chemical cremation, liquid cremation, or aquamation.

Background

Alkaline hydrolysis takes place inside a large metal chamber, where water and lye are heated and pressurized. The chemical reactions are like those in natural decomposition. However, the process takes three to twelve hours instead of years.

Alkaline hydrolysis dissolves flesh, blood, and muscle into a liquid consisting of salt, peptides, and amino acids, which can be drained from the chamber. After the liquid is drained, bones, dental fillings, and, if they exist, pacemakers and artificial joints like knees or hips remain. The bones are crushed into a powder and given to loved ones in an urn, just as in fire cremation. With alkaline hydrolysis, the dental fillings and medical equipment can be recycled. With fire cremation, on the other hand, dental fillings create air pollution and pacemakers are subject to explosions. Pacemakers often must be removed from the dead person’s body before cremation.

A farmer from Middlesex, England, named Amos Herbert Hobson developed alkaline hydrolysis in 1888 to dispose of animal carcasses. His method produced fertilizer that supported his agriculture. Scientific labs began using it one hundred years later to dispose of cows infected with mad cow disease. Not long after this, pet owners embraced the technology when saying goodbye to pets.

Albany Medical College in New York installed the first commercial system for human bodies in 1993. After that, other universities and hospitals began using alkaline hydrolysis to dispose of donated bodies. Minnesota legalized alkaline hydrolysis for human bodies in 2003. That same year, the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, became the first in the state to use alkaline hydrolysis. In 2011, funeral homes in Florida and Ohio began using it. However, Ohio has since withdrawn authorization for the process.

Overview

In the 2020s, alkaline hydrolysis has generated controversy in the United States. Some view it as an environmentally friendly, affordable way to dispose of remains. However, some businesses, state governments, and many Roman Catholics oppose it.

Some businesses within the funeral industry, such as those that manufacture caskets, oppose it. For example, Richard Hamm was a Republican member of the Indiana State House of Representatives and is the owner of two casket manufacturing companies. He painted a negative picture of alkaline hydrolysis, telling other members of the House that the process requires bodies to be dissolved in acid, which is then poured down the drain. The Indiana bill to allow alkaline hydrolysis failed after Hamm’s inaccurate speech.

Some states initially permitted alkaline hydrolysis but later reversed their decision. For example, New Hampshire allowed alkaline hydrolysis for only two years. This was also true of Ohio, where Roman Catholic leaders alleged that the process does not honor the dignity of the human body. They contended that traditional burial methods, including flame creation, showed more reverence for a person’s body.

Some oppose alkaline hydrolysis because they fear that health and safety issues could arise and believe more testing is needed to see how the process affects water quality. However, Florida has been using alkaline hydrolysis on human bodies since 2014, and testing in St. Petersburg, Florida, did not show any changes in water quality.

Supporters believe alkaline hydrolysis has significant environmental benefits. It produces less air pollution, emitting less mercury into the air than cremation. A 2011 University of Groningen study compared conventional burial, cremation, and alkaline hydrolysis. Overall, alkaline hydrolysis had the lowest environmental footprint of the methods tested. Moreover, it could produce fertilizer and water for irrigation. Conventional burial and cremation demand raw materials to make caskets and construct vaults. Moreover, millions of gallons of embalming fluid are used each year. These materials are all buried underground, which is not good for the environment.

In terms of cost, alkaline hydrolysis is an appealing option for customers. The cost is often similar to that of fire cremation, which is thousands of dollars less than burial in a casket. It also appeals more to some customers than fire creation, which uses flames to destroy a human body. These customers prefer the water-based alternative of alkaline hydrolysis.

By 2026, alkaline hydrolysis was legal in about twenty-eight US states, while some other states continued to consider whether to authorize the process. Additionally, some funeral homes near state borders offer it because they can drive across a state line into a state where it is legal. In 2026, Scotland became the first part of the United Kingdom to legalize water cremation, reflecting broader international interest in alkaline hydrolysis as a funeral option.

Bibliography

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