By admin 
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — Some North Carolina families are making an unusual choice about what to do with their bodies when they die.
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Marsha and Michael Costigan are turning to a human composting company based in Washington state called Earth Funeral.
The Charlotte couple’s been married more than 50 years, but Michael Costigan is nearing the end of his life.
He has primary progressive aphasia, a rare form of dementia that’s forced Marsha Costigan to plan for his death without his participation.
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“We’d kind of said cremation, but he was not very amenable to the talk, so we never really did,” Marsha Costigan said.
Through a support group, she discovered Earth Funeral.
The company offers what can be called “natural organic reduction” or “soil transformation” or, most vividly, “human composting.”
“This is a simple, natural, gentle alternative to traditional burial and cremation,” said John Collins, an Earth Funeral spokesperson.
For $5,000 to $6,000, Earth Funeral wraps the body in a biodegradable shroud and places it in a proprietary vessel that contains a mixture of woodchips, organic mulch, and wildflowers.
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“Over the period of 30 or 40 days, the body naturally decomposes where microbes break down the body at a molecular level, and the result is about 300 pounds of highly nutrient-rich soil,” Collins said.
Marsha Costigan says it’s a perfect option for both her and Michael.
“It’s so good for the earth, and my husband is very ecologically involved,” she said.
“Way back in college, he was collecting Coors cans to recycle.”
Recent data from the National Funeral Directors Association shows 95% of people still opt for burial or cremation, but more than 60% are interested in exploring green, environmentally friendly options.
Collins says one of Earth Funeral’s goals is to “encourage more people to talk about their end-of-life plans.”
Marsha Costigan plans to use some of her husband’s soil for her own gardening and give the rest to Earth Funeral land conservation projects.
Earth Funeral’s services are available to anyone, even though human composting is only legal in 14 states.
That list doesn’t include North Carolina or South Carolina.
Collins says neither state has any current legislation in the works for making the human composting process legal, but Earth Funeral would like to open a facility in Charlotte one day.
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