Green Burial Rules

1.     Green Burials are only allowed where permitted by the Cemetery Commission which is currently only in Jane King Cemetery.

 

2.     The body of the deceased is to be prepared in an environmentally friendly way. Embalming and other preservatives as well as pesticides and/or weed killers are not permitted in this area.

 

3.     The decedent’s representative shall employ a licensed Funeral Director to oversee natural burials to ensure that all Massachusetts Regulations pertaining to the handling and transportation of bodies are followed.

 

4.     Vaults are not utilized in green burials.  Burial in a casket is not required.  However, if one is used, it must be made of biodegradable material such as shroud, pine or cardboard container. Any clothing or shroud used to cover the body is to be readily biodegradable.

 

5.     Burial depth will be three - four feet and the grave will be mounded to allow for settling.

 

6.     Rules for fees, plantings and memorials are the same as for other town cemeteries.

 

7.     Sequential burial will be used to minimize disturbance to the land, vegetation, and graves.  One may pre-purchase the right to be buried; however, the actual site isn’t assigned until time of need.

 

8.     Town residents (only) may purchase the right to bury. A single lot is 5ft x 10ft; and the location of the grave will be at the discretion of the Cemetery Commission.