Is Human Composting Safe for the Environment?

Human composting, as it is currently practiced, is arguably the most environmentally friendly form of final disposition available today. It uses no external heat source and produces no carbon emissions: The process of decomposition occurs as microbes in the body interact with the organic material in the vessel where the body is held. Further, the process requires no casket or embalming, and actually sequesters carbon as the compost is created. According to Recompose, between 0.84 and 1.4 tons of carbon dioxide are saved each time a human undergoes natural organic reduction.

Natural organic reduction also produces a safe and usable final product according to research conducted by a team led by Lynn Carpenter-Boggs, M.S.,Ph.D, a Professor of Soil Science at Washington State University. It is based on a well-established technique of closed-vessel livestock mortality composting, which has been in use as a method of sustainably managing livestock mortalities for at least over three decades in the U.S.

Soil Research

When researching the effects of natural organic reduction, Carpenter-Boggs and her team monitored the process on six human research subjects. Plant-based materials were placed in a container above and below the bodies, and moisture, aeration and rotation were managed to ensure conditions were optimal. After four weeks, samples of the resulting material (the compost) were analyzed for concentrations of carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium as well as heavy metals such as arsenic, cadmium, copper, lead, mercury and zinc. Measures of the amount of coliform bacteria were also taken, and the stability of the material based on carbon dioxide and ammonium release were assessed. 

The results of the study, as reported by Washington State University and Recompose, showed that natural organic reduction resulted in a product that met or exceeded EPA guidelines for heavy metals, and that chemical and biological analyses were in the acceptable range per EPA rules. Additionally, concentrations of the drug Diazepam, which was introduced into the process, were reduced by 95%. 

With that being said, the process of composting of livestock has not been demonstrated to eliminate prions, which are responsible for a group of fatal diseases known as transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (for example, mad cow disease in cattle and scrapie in sheep and goats). For this reason, people who have died from a human prion disease such as Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease, cannot be disposed of through natural organic reduction. Additionally, a person who had a diagnosis of either Ebola or active tuberculosis at the time of death is excluded from the process at this time. The WA State Board of Health regulates natural organic reduction in WA State, and has served as the model for other states’ regulations. 

Sources 

“Frequently Asked Questions”. Recompose. https://recompose.life/faqs/#human-composting 

“Composting Animal Mortalities”. Cornell Waste Management Institute. http://cwmi.css.cornell.edu/Composting_Animal_Mortalities.pdf 

“Human Composting Soil Research Pilot Study”. Recompose. https://recompose.life/soil-research-pilot-study/ 

“Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease”. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/creutzfeldt-jakob/about/?CDC_AAref_Val 

WA State Natural Organic Reduction Regulations. https://app.leg.wa.gov/wac/default.aspx?cite=246-500-055