Hello from the Vermont Natural Burial Team!

It's wonderful to see new subscribers.

As always, please help us get the word out about Vermont Natural burial by sharing our website vermontnaturalburial.org so that people can join this mailing list. We know there are so many people we haven't reached!

From time to time in this newsletter we'll share some talking points/statistics to help you start the conversation about the benefits of natural burial. Ready for the first one?

Did you know that every year 1.6 million tons of concrete are used in conventional cemeteries in the US? Concrete is used as a base for traditional style markers and is the most common form of material for burial vaults, also know as grave liners.

Why does it matter? Well a concrete grave liner separates the body from the soil. If the body and the soil don't come into contact fairly quickly after burial, the natural aerobic process of decomposition doesn't take place. Without this, the nutrients can't return to the ecosystem. It also matters because concrete is bad for the soil - worse than formeldahyde, chemotherapy drugs, and antibiotics.

Why? Well because all of those can be broken down by the soil into their simple building blocks and either reabsorbed into or held in place by the soil. Concrete, on other hand, produces a leachate, which overwhelms the soil ability to hold it in place causing it to be able to move through the soil and potentially contaminate ground water with its high pH level and chemical components that the soil has not had time to break down.

Do you have any questions for us? What makes you interested in Natural Burial. Drop us a line and let us know!

Thank you,

The Vermont Natural Burial Team