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Late Spring 2008
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Columns
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Mortuary Muse*
*t o think or consider deeply; meditate By LowellIs
the phrase, “How Do I Love Thee...Let Me Count The Ways,” about to be
replaced with, “How Can I Dispose of Your Body...Let Me Count The Ways”?
Recently two civilian-type Dead Beat readers, from Oklahoma, sent me an
AP article about alkaline hydrolysis, a method of safely dissolving animal
tissue and medical waste. Mayo
Clinic in Minnesota and University of Florida, Gainesville use this process to
dispose of research cadavers. Chad Corbin, a funeral director in Manchester, New
Hampshire was reported to be considering installing the equipment as a cremation
replacement. New Hampshire and
Minnesota were said to be the only states that permit it at this time.
He has not completed the permitting process and indicated he would charge
about the same as cremation even though it would cost more (about $300,000) to
install the equipment. BioSafe Engineering of Brownsburg, Indiana makes the
equipment, “Tissue Digester ™” which will reduce animal, medical tissue
waste or cadavers to coffee colored liquid the consistency of motor oil and dry
bone material about like cremains. The
brown liquid may be safely released down the drain and bone material handled as
normal cremains. The process
involves loading the material to be reduced and sterilized into a horizontal
cylinder which then uses water, chemicals, steam heat and pressure.
According to BioSafe’s website a fully loaded cylinder takes about
three hours to complete the alkaline hydrolysis of the pathological material.
The entire process including loading and cooling might be five to eight
hours depending on the quality of the steam. BioSafe Engineering’s WR (2) Tissue Digester ™
System technology is written into EU law as the method of disposing of
Mad Cow Disease infectious animal waste. The
process also inactivates the prions. Brad
Crain company president said 40 to 50 of their cylinders are in use by
veterinary schools, universities, pharmaceutical companies and the U.S.
Government. A link at BioSafe Engineering’s website takes you to
Resomation.com, which is the website for Resomation, Ltd. of Glasgow, Scotland,
e-mail: info@resomation.com. Resomation
Ltd. features their version of “Bio
Cremation...creating ash without flames.”
They explain the process of Alkaline Hydrolysis using their equipment
which is called the Resomator. For
an average body they use about 15 liters of chemical, potassium hydroxide in
liquid form, and 350 liters of water. Steam
heats the water to 350 degrees with pressure in the cylinder to speed up the
process. BioSafe Engineering says their equipment ranges in size
from 11 pound capacity up to and beyond 10,000 pounds.
Proponents claim that Alkaline Hydrolysis is environmentally superior to
cremation because of lack of emissions and less fuel needed for the small amount
of steam heat. The resulting
brownish liquid is sterile with a mild ammonia odor and could be safely poured
on the ground. The shadow dry bone
that is left easily crushes to small fragments or powder.
Embalming chemical residue is also broken down to harmless components
within the water. (I wonder if the logistics of disposing or moving 350 liters
of liquid might offset some of the green benefits. Most sewer systems use
electric motors on pumps throughout their
operating systems.) The destruction of pathological tissue from Mad Cow Disease
and the inactivation of the deadly prions by Alkaline Hydrolysis is certainly
something to consider. Many people think that medical donation is the ultimate
end disposition. Few realize that at
least some of the parts are going to be cremated or maybe dissolved and flushed
down the drain.
About the Author: Lowell Pugh has funeral director and embalmer licenses
in Missouri and Texas and continues the operation of the 104-year-old family
funeral home.
He is publisher of The Dead Beat which began in 1999.
He can be contacted at The Dead Beat address.
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ADVERTISERS Brian Simmons Springfield Mortuary Service Miller Coach & Limousine Sales Si Mortuary & Cremation Services Mid-States Professional Services Dallas Institute of Funeral Service American Crematory Equipment Co. Aaron Beasley Embalming Service & Crematory Texas Funeral Directors Association Central Texas Funeral Transport
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