Is promession the ultimate ecological goodbye?

Developed over the last 20 years by Swedish biologist Susanne Wiigh-Masak, promession is a new innovation in ecological burials. It follows the simple principle that human remains can be transformed into organic soil so that death can, literally, nurture new life.
The idea came in response to the increasing environmental impact of using wooden coffins and carcinogenic embalming fluids in the funeral process. In addition, it is estimated that one third of Sweden’s mercury emissions come from crematoria.
Wiigh-Masak continued to develop this new method of burial and went on to found the company Promessa Organic AB.

What is promession?
Although it may sound like the stuff of science fiction promession is actually a pretty straight forward process.

• First the body is frozen to – 18*C, then placed into liquid nitrogen to make it more brittle.
• The body is vibrated with sound waves to reduce it to a dust before all liquid is evaporated in a vacuum chamber.
• The, then, dry powder is passed through a separator where any metals and mercury are removed for recycling.
• The dust is placed in a biodegradable coffin, buried and becomes an organic compost in about 6-12 months.

Promession has many supporters, not only among the ecologically minded but also those who are aware that we need to address the issue of space needed for future burials.

The process reduces the remains to about ⅓ of the weight of the original body. The dust is, if kept dry, is hygienic and odourless so there is no hurry to continue the burial or cremation process. The remains and coffin can be cremated and scattered. Alternatively, a tree or bush can be planted, along with the burial of the coffin, as a lasting memorial.

As well as being a rather poetic end to human remains, promession offers a chance, in your last act, to reduce your impact on the environment. The process itself reduces the need for energy and does not release toxins into the air, unlike traditional cremation. The remains decompose very quickly, compared to standard burial, and are effectively a fertiliser. Promession also prevents the leaching of chemicals into the ground and water sources.

Despite great support from the public and many countries there are still no ‘prematoria’ open yet. Promessa are, however, confident that operational testing in Sweden will start this year.
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www.promessa.se