Resomation rapidly decomposes bodies in a solution of water and potassium hydroxide heated to 150°C (302°F). Although the process was developed in the United States, it is not yet legal in most states; nor is it legal in the UK.

Enter Resomation Ltd, a Glasgow company that has entered into discussions with more than a dozen local authorities that are desperate to find new ways of handling their dead and interested in learning more about resomation. Because no local authority can approve resomation until the process is legalized by the national Government, however, Resomation Ltd is also lobbying members of the House of Commons.

A report in The Independent, citing an acknowledgment by justice minister Bridget Prentice, suggests those efforts might be getting somewhere. “We are… aware of the growing interest in resomation as an alternative method of disposal. In view of this interest we are giving consideration to the representations that have already been made to us and are exploring how best to engage more widely on this issue,” says Prentice.

New Solutions, Not-so-New Problem
Seven years ago, a report from the House of Commons environment committee expressed alarm about the “sheer magnitude of the problems facing our cemeteries” and called the Government’s handling of the crisis “inexcusable.” Today, experts say that half the graveyards in Greater London are already full, and the remaining capacity is being used up at the rate of 10,000 interments per year. Even with two bodies buried in each grave, the remaining space will run out quickly.

Proponents claim that legalizing resomation will not only help to alleviate the space problem, but also provide a more environmentally friendly alternative to cremation.

More than a records archive
Launched in November 2008, Names in Stone is an online repository of cemetery records. But while the ability to access burial records online is nothing new, Names in Stone goes a step further by providing actual burial maps – a real boon to historians, researchers and genealogists trying to locate and document burial information.

The site’s searchable database allows online visitors to view photographs and see the precise location of a gravesite as well as the names on adjoining cemetery plots, according to David Day, president of Names in Stone. In addition, researching burial records online gives users access to information that may or may not be recorded on a headstone, such as birth or death dates and names of parents, without having to deal with the logistics and costs of traveling to the actual locations.

Accessible public information
Cemetery mapping capabilities are provided by Spatial Generations, a software product of Gateway Mapping, Inc., an Orem, Utah company. Currently, approximately 100 cemeteries across the country are included in the Names in Stone database, most of them in Utah. Users are encouraged to contribute by inviting local cemeteries to participate, using online mapping tools to add smaller cemeteries with 200 or fewer plots, and sharing photos and other relevant information with the online community. Although burial information is a matter of public record, Names in Stone adheres to a policy of obtaining authorization from individual cemeteries to publish their records

The ability of users to find burial information and locations online is welcomed by cemetery staffs, for whom it will save many hours of research. In cooperation with Teleflora, a national floral delivery service, Names in Stone even allows visitors to order flowers online for delivery to the gravesite of a family member.

“Conventional cemetery Web sites provide an alphabetical listing of burials,” says Day. “Names in Stone shows you where someone is buried.”