New York governor legalises composting of human bodies after death

New York on Saturday legalised natural organic reduction, popularly known as human composting or termination, after death.

A person can now have their body turned into soil after their death - which is seen as an environmentally friendly alternative to burial or cremation, reports BBC.

Also known as "natural organic reduction", the practice sees a body decompose over several weeks after being shut in a container.

The legislative move by New York's Democratic governor Kathy Hochul makes NY the sixth state to legalise the law since 2019. The law will provide New Yorkers with an environmentally-safe alternative to burial.

The process happens in special above-ground facilities.

Washington became the first state to legalize human composting in 2019, followed by Colorado and Oregon in 2021, and then Vermont and California later in 2022. New York's legislation, A382, passed both assemblies over the summer, reports Guardian.

A body is put in a closed vessel along with selected materials such as wood chips, alfalfa and straw grass, and gradually breaks down under the action of microbes.

After a period of around a month - and a heating process to kill off any contagion - loved ones are given the resulting soil. This can be used in planting flowers, vegetables or trees.

Catholic bishops in New York state reportedly opposed the legislation, arguing that human bodies should not be treated like "household waste".

Traditional burials involving a coffin also consume wood, land and other natural resources.

Human composting is already legal throughout Sweden. And natural burials - in which a body is buried without a coffin or with a biodegradable coffin - are permitted in the UK.