Phyllis Carlson of Quinnesec talks to Breen Township clerk and cemetery sexton Gus Murray about green burial at the Breen Township Cemetery in Foster City. (Theresa Proudfit/Daily News photo)

IRON MOUNTAIN — Time was when burying the dead meant digging a grave and putting the body in the ground.

Now, a growing trend across the U.S. is returning to those more simple practices as a less expensive and more environmentally friendly option.

A program April 10 at the Dickinson County Library in Iron Mountain will focus on what’s involved with a green or natural burial — and where it can be done in the region.

For a green burial, the body is not cremated nor infused with embalming chemicals that might get into the soil. It instead is placed in a biodegradable coffin or shroud and buried without a burial vault. While the practice is legal in Michigan, most local cemeteries have regulations that prohibit the method.

Only four cemeteries in the Upper Peninsula are known to offer green burial. They include the Keweenaw Forest Hill Cemetery in Portage Township in Houghton County, Chassell Township Cemetery in Houghton County and the Evergreen Cemetery just south of Eagle River in Keweenaw County.

The fourth is in Dickinson County’s Breen Township, which approved the method two years ago and will have its first green burial this spring.

Gus Murray, Breen Township clerk, and cemetery sexton, said he has considered a green burial for himself, reasoning, “Why pay money to have an expensive cement vault put into the ground?”

Breen Township residents can purchase a cemetery plot for $100 that is large enough for four people if using a green burial. The same lot for out-of-towners sells for $1,000.

So far, the township has had only the single request for a green burial. “We had one lady call — her brother died in Marquette, and we are burying him in April,” Murray said.

Jacobs Funeral Home director Perry Jacobs said they had “zero interest” in green burial, likely due to the climate — during winter, many cemeteries need to store bodies until spring thaw to do burials.

But the different municipal regulations also, for now, make doing green burials difficult for individuals who might want to be in the same cemetery as their families and ancestors, Jacobs said.

Most funeral directors support green burial if that’s what the family wants, but they need a cemetery, said Stephen Jukuri of the Keweenaw Green Burial Alliance in the Keweenaw Peninsula and surrounding areas.

“To create a whole new cemetery for green burial is quite cumbersome. We looked into it. It would be a daunting task,” he said.

Instead, the easier route would be to incorporate green services in an undeveloped area of an existing cemetery.

Jukuri said existing cemeteries must meet health department guidelines and regulations, but the state doesn’t require vaults or embalming except for special circumstances, such as communicable disease.

More cemeteries and municipalities are considering green burials, as interest has increased over the past few years

“Green burial has a broader appeal than people might think,” Jukuri said.

He ticked off the advantages: It’s better for the environment, it is more in line with some religious traditions, it’s less expensive and the person can even make the casket or choose a cloth or blanket as the wrap.

“The price is closer to cremation. You still have to buy the plot, pay for the grave opening, but it is more economical when you are saving on the vault,” Jukuri said.

Those who hunt, fish or otherwise connect with the outdoors seem especially drawn to natural burials, Jukuri added.

Chassell Township has areas of its cemetery dedicated to green or natural burials, and they plan to maintain those grounds as woodlands. Winter burials are allowed for green burials only. The original green section has sold out, but new green burial areas have been created, officials said.

Phyllis Carlson of Quinnesec, who considers herself a naturalist, said there is interest in green burial in the area but most think it is illegal.

“It’s the circle of life,” Carlson said. “We have been decomposing into the ground a lot longer than we have been embalmed and stuck in a box or cremated.”

Although the practice of embalming started as early as Egypt’s first dynasty in 3,200 B.C., the Egyptians only embalmed their royals, Carlson said.

Embalming didn’t really begin in the United States until the Civil War era, when it was necessary to bring the corpses of dead servicemen home to their families.

“Growing up, I thought about being buried more than I should have. The idea of being stuck in a box never really satisfied me. Then cremation started becoming more and more acceptable, and that was the option I was going with, but I still didn’t feel satisfied with it,” Carlson said. “Cremation uses a lot of energy and basically leaves bleached-out bone, and they crush you into powder. My go-to solution was to disappear somewhere.”

Then Carlson started looking into the green burial concept and said it was the first time she felt at peace about dying.

“We take from the earth, and we should give back to the earth,” she said. “My idea is to be wrapped in the quilt my mother made many, many years ago.”

However, while Carlson now knows how she wants to proceed, she had difficulties finalizing those green burial plans.

“We need a green burial ground and a funeral director that will work with you,” Carlson said, including environmentally acceptable embalming techniques.

“Our funeral homes would have to offer it. They need to have what is required in place and get it going,” Carlson said, adding, “Not having a green burial here in this community would be a reason for me to leave the area.”

Less than 100 registered green burial cemeteries and memorial woodlands now exist in the United States.

“To see things like this being offered,” Carlson noted, “could bring people into the community.”

The Keweenaw Green Burial Alliance will present the program “Green Burial — A Trending End to Life” at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 10, at the Dickinson County Library. For more information, contact Carlson at pcarlson729@gmail.com or 906-396-1831.

Theresa Proudfit can be reached at 906-774-2772, ext. 45, or tproudfit@ironmountaindailynews.com.