Following Washington State which legalized natural organic reduction or the contained accelerated conversion of human remains to soil this past May, Colorado represenatives want to bring what is commonly called recomposition to the state.
A representative with a mission
Representative Titone and Senator Rodriguez are working to ensure that Colorado will become the second state to offer Natural Organic Reduction. While Colorado doesn’t ban this method of body disposal, it is a gray area and Titone wants to create clarity by having it legally permitted. Titone stated that: “This service embodies the spirit of Colorado’s way of life. In addition to freedom of choice for consumers and a positive environmental impact, Natural Organic Reduction will also benefit Colorado by bringing in a new, unique business opportunity that complements the state’s entrepreneurial nature.” Titone is planning on sponsoring the bill in the upcoming legislative session.
An innovative death state
Colorado’s projected cremation rate in 2018 was 73.6% a rise from 70.3% in 2015 and ranking it the sixth highest state in the USA. Chuck Bowman, a Colorado funeral director and treasurer of the National Funeral Directors Association, which commissioned the study, commented that while cremation continues to rise for many reasons, in Colorado environmental is a major one. Aligning perfectly with Representative Titones sentiment of why this new body decomposition offering needs to be brought to Colorado.
Colorado is also home to the nation’s only legal open-air cremation site. And the state legislature passed a bill in 2011 that legalized “chemical methods” as an accepted form of body disposition.
Recompose enters the scene
“It’s not easy to think about after-death choices. Natural Organic Reduction offers an alternative to embalming and burial or cremation that is natural, safe, sustainable, and will result in significant savings in carbon emissions and land usage,” said Recompose CEO and founder Katrina Spade. Recompose is a death care company who wants to be offering natural organic reduction services as soon as 2021. “We look forward to working with Representative Titone and Senator Rodriguez to make sure this new alternative to conventional after-death practices is available to all Coloradans who want it.¨
