Method Of Water Cremation

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Innovative, less costly method of water cremation to be announced in early 2025

by Ian Sutton, October 31, 2024

The method of disposition of human bodies may be revolutionary in the history of death-care thanks to a new system of water cremation.

The newly-developed equipment, called an 'aqualyser,' is expected to be produced by a mid-sized electric engineering company in British Columbia, meaning funeral homes world-wide could pay a third of the cost of other devices on the market. Alkaline hydrolysis technology was introduced in the early 2000s. The process, also known as aquamation or water cremation, has since steadily grown and is now attracting increased public interest.

An engineer at Harborview Electric originated the new method by adapting it to disposing of his own cat. The company where he works had been producing electric control panels for 45 years when Theo Nguyen came up with the idea.

Now Stan Hussey, owner of Harbourview, could turn much of his business into one manufacturing the smaller devices, resembling large home freezers. The technology uses potassium hydroxide and heated water to dissolve human bodies into liquid and white, brittle bone matter in a far gentler way than flame cremation.

"The concept is to make this affordable for small, independent funeral homes," Hussey says, acknowledging that his company may be seen as revolutionary in the death-care field. "That's what we're hoping to do. We think it’s a really good solution for the whole world." The narrowly re-elected government of British Columbia, however, has been slow to legalize the process, which would help Hussey develop an innovative new industry and jobs. He’s reluctant to move out of the province to the US or other Canadian province, but he will if he’s given no choice.

Operating under the name Aqualyser Solutions, the company will produce low-pressure-low-temperature units that sell for a fraction of the cost of other devices on the market. The price for the public will be far less than what's now charged – welcome news to those coping with funeral poverty. Not only will the cost be lower than other equipment, but also not visually intimidating.

Aquamation was patented in 1888 in England for disposing of animal bodies. Over a century later, two doctors at Albany Medical College in New York revised the process to dissolve human bodies in a mixture of heated water and lye. The process since then has steadily become better known and continues to attract interest and public support.

The method is predicted by many — including funeral directors — to become the default method of human body disposition, surpassing flame cremation and casket burial, both highly damaging to the environment. Aquamation has a carbon footprint about one-tenth that of flame cremation.

Aquamation machines used since the early 2000s are air- and water-tight chambers. The body is placed in a steel tube-shaped vessel filled with heated water and an alkali solution of potassium hydroxide and caustic soda. The results are whitish bone material after being dried and pulverized, and liquid effluent like liquid peptide soap which flows out with wastewater. The bone material is about a third of that from flame cremation. Mercury teeth fillings are disposed of in environmentally safe manner, unlike flame cremation where they are discharged up retort stacks into the atmosphere and fall back to earth as a contaminant.

Hussey’s business partners will be inviting funeral homes and other death-care facilities in the US and Canada to become paying customers. Guy Heywood, one of his partners, heard much interest in the system from funeral directors when he attended a conference this fall in Washington State.

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