Aquamation, Human Composting and Green Burial: What’s Legal Where

Aquamation (alkaline hydrolysis) and human composting (natural organic reduction) are legal only in states whose laws specifically authorize them, and the list of aquamation legal states and composting states changes almost every legislative session. Green burial is different: it needs no special law, only a cemetery willing to bury without a vault and a body that has not been embalmed with conventional chemicals.

This guide explains what each method is, gives verified examples of states where each is authorized (checked against the statutes in September 2026), and shows how to check your own state before you plan around one of them.

The three options at a glance

Aquamation: what it is and where it is legal

Washington’s statute gives a clear definition: RCW 68.04.290 describes alkaline hydrolysis as “the reduction of human remains to bone fragments and essential elements in a licensed hydrolysis facility using heat, pressure, water, and base chemical agents.” Minnesota’s current definition, in Minnesota Statutes section 149A.02, describes a water-based dissolution process using alkaline chemicals, heat, agitation and pressure.

Because it needs specialized, licensed equipment, aquamation is only available where a state has created a licensing framework for it. Three verified examples:

• Minnesota authorized it in 2003. Laws of Minnesota 2003, chapter 32, signed May 12, 2003, made alkaline hydrolysis subject to the same licensing requirements and regulations that apply to cremation, crematories and cremated remains.
• California passed Assembly Bill 967 (chapter 846, approved October 15, 2017), which set up licensing of hydrolysis facilities under the state Cemetery and Funeral Bureau, operative July 1, 2020.
• Washington added hydrolysis to its law through Senate Bill 5001 (2019 Laws, chapter 432), effective May 1, 2020.

This is not a complete list. Other states have also authorized alkaline hydrolysis, and some have not. The only reliable test is your own state’s statute or funeral licensing board.

Human composting: what it is and where it is legal

Several states use the same definition: natural organic reduction is “the contained, accelerated conversion of human remains to soil.” That is the wording in Washington’s RCW 68.04.310, and New York’s law uses it too. The family receives soil, which can be kept, scattered or used to plant something, within the limits of state rules.

Verified examples, with the date each law took or takes effect:

Sources for each row: Washington’s SB 5001 bill history; Colorado’s SB21-006; New York’s A382 and the Department of State’s natural organic reduction regulations, 19 NYCRR Part 204; Minnesota’s section 149A.02; New Jersey’s P.L. 2025, chapter 143; and California’s AB 351.

The California entry is the one people most often get wrong. The law passed in 2022, but its licensing requirements only become operative on January 1, 2027, so check whether a licensed California facility exists before planning around one.

Other states have passed or are considering similar laws, and this table is not exhaustive. Treat it as a September 2026 snapshot, not a final list.

How to check whether aquamation or composting is legal in your state

1. Search your state’s statutes for “alkaline hydrolysis”, “hydrolysis” and “natural organic reduction”. Most state legislatures publish searchable codes.
2. Check your state funeral or cemetery licensing board for a list of licensed hydrolysis or reduction facilities. A law with no licensed facility yet does not help you this week.
3. Note the effective date, not just the year a bill passed. California and New Jersey both show how far apart those can be.
4. If your state does not allow it, ask a provider in a state that does whether they accept out-of-state decedents, what transport and permit steps are involved, and what the total cost is, including transport.

Green burial needs no special law

Green burial is simply burial done in a way that lets the body return to the earth: no conventional embalming, no concrete vault, and a biodegradable container. Nothing in federal law stops it, and two parts of the federal Funeral Rule work in its favor.

First, embalming. The FTC’s consumer guide to the Funeral Rule states that no state law requires routine embalming for every death. Under 16 CFR Part 453, a funeral home cannot charge for embalming you did not approve, except where a law requires it in that particular situation.

Second, vaults. The same regulation requires funeral homes to tell you that in most areas state or local law does not require a container around the casket, but many cemeteries do, so the grave will not sink. The vault requirement, where there is one, is the cemetery’s rule. Our guide to direct burial and whether a vault is required covers how to check a cemetery’s policy.

That makes the cemetery the deciding factor. A conventional cemetery that requires a vault in every grave cannot offer green burial, however willing the family is. Your options are a cemetery with a vault-free section, or a dedicated natural burial ground.

Hybrid, natural and conservation burial grounds

The Green Burial Council, a nonprofit certifier, uses three levels. Its cemetery certification standards (revised and adopted December 18, 2019) require every level to:

• accept only bodies that have not been embalmed, or were embalmed only with nontoxic chemicals it has approved;
• prohibit any vault, vault lid, concrete box, slab or partitioned liner;
• allow only containers and shrouds made of natural, biodegradable materials;
• set aside at least 10% of plot sales for an endowment fund for long-term care of the site.

The differences between the levels:

• Hybrid cemetery: a conventional cemetery meeting those core standards, often in one section.
• Natural burial ground: adds an ecological assessment, limits on markers, and an average density of no more than 500 burials per acre.
• Conservation burial ground: adds habitat restoration, at least 20 acres (or 5 if next to other protected land), an average density of no more than 300 burials per acre, and permanent protection by a conservation easement or similar binding agreement held with a government agency or conservation nonprofit.

Certification is voluntary. A cemetery can offer vault-free burial without being certified, so ask directly about vaults, embalming and container rules.

Questions to ask any provider

• Are you licensed in this state for alkaline hydrolysis or natural organic reduction? What is your license number?
• May I have your General Price List? The Funeral Rule requires one from any funeral provider that sells both goods and services.
• What exactly is returned to us, in what container, and how long does it take?
• For burial: does the cemetery require a vault or liner in this section? Does it accept unembalmed bodies and shrouds?
• Are there limits on markers, or on where we can scatter or use soil?

Price disclosure works the same way for these methods as for any other: you are entitled to itemized prices before you choose. Our plain-English guide to the FTC Funeral Rule lists those rights, and cremation vs burial compares the conventional options. If a method is not yet legal where you live, you can still record your wishes in writing now and name the state or facility you would want used.

Sources

• Washington State Legislature: RCW Chapter 68.04, Definitions (68.04.290, 68.04.310)
• Washington State Legislature: SB 5001 (2019), Concerning human remains
• Minnesota Revisor of Statutes: Section 149A.02, Definitions
• Minnesota Revisor of Statutes: Laws 2003, Chapter 32
• California Legislative Information: AB 967 (2017), Human remains disposal: alkaline hydrolysis
• California Legislative Information: AB 351 (2022), Natural organic reduction
• Colorado General Assembly: SB21-006, Human Remains Natural Reduction Soil
• New York State Senate: Assembly Bill A382 (2021-2022)
• New York Department of State: Natural Organic Reduction Regulations, 19 NYCRR Part 204
• New Jersey Legislature: P.L. 2025, Chapter 143
• Federal Trade Commission, Consumer Advice: The FTC Funeral Rule
• Electronic Code of Federal Regulations: 16 CFR Part 453, Funeral Industry Practices
• Green Burial Council: Burial Cemetery Certification Standards (nonprofit certifier)