Green Burial and Home Funerals

Green burial and home funerals, also known as family-directed funerals, were the hot topic of discussion at last week’s meeting of Doorways of Santa Fe.

In 1800, every burial was a green burial and almost every funeral was a home funeral. How times have changed!

Home funeral guide Marlow Morrison outlined the steps a family would need to take when someone dies at home. She suggests making sure bodies are accepted directly from the family without hired help.

The paths differ based on whether the death was expected, either with an attending physician or while on hospice, or unexpected. These steps for home or family directed death care are for the state of New Mexico. Other state’s rules may be different.

Expected Death

1. Hospice nurse or attending physician will pronounce the death.
2. Prepare the body – wash and surround with dry ice or cold packs within 24 hours.
3. Obtain a death certificate from the vital statistics office.
4. Obtain a burial transit permit from the vital statistics office.
5. Handle final disposition, which can be burial, cremation, or body donation.
6. Burial: Check with the cemetery’s policies or the local registrar’s office about zoning for home burial.
7. Cremation: Obtain a cremation permit from the Office of the Medical Investigator (OMI) or crematory.
8. Body Donation: Whole body arrangements need to be made in advance of death with a medical school. You can also research other body donation organizations through this blog post.

Unexpected Death

1. When someone is found dead, call 911.
2. The body will go to the Office of the Medical Investigator before returning home.
3. An autopsy may be performed to determine cause of death.
4. OMI will provide a transport permit from their facility.
5. Take the body home and ice.
6. Obtain a death certificate from the vital statistics office.
7. Handle final disposition, which can be burial, cremation, or body donation. (See details listed above for each method.)