The Hidden Pollutants That Lie Beneath Cemetery Grounds Are Way More Alarming Than Ghosts Or Vampires And Are Spurring Conversations About More Environmentally Conscious Burial Practices
Within a central cemetery in Marau, a tiny city in southern Brazil, there lie squat mausoleums that, from the street, appear clean and well-maintained.
However, after a team of researchers visited the site a few years ago, they discovered that one of the tomb’s walls had a crack. Inside that very same tomb was a newly deceased person, and the corpse was leaking.
Human bodies are primarily made of water, salts, and carbon. They also contain other compounds such as iron, potassium, and calcium.
After a person dies and their body begins to decompose, though, these components transform into “necroleachate”– a salty liquid that is about sixty percent water and forty percent organic compounds and salts.
For every fifteen to sixteen pounds of body weight, approximately one gallon of leachate is produced– and the liquid emits a foul and fishy smell.
In traditional cemeteries, this post-mortem liquid ultimately seeps into the ground. And in certain regions– especially those with sand or gravel soil– the leachate can actually contaminate groundwater.
So, in Marau, Brazil– where the climate is hot and humid– this reality is particularly alarming. According to one geographer at Brazil’s Faculdade Meridional, Alcindo Neckel, cemeteries are actually one of the most significant contamination issues.
Still, as the world’s population has ballooned over the past century, so has the need for cemeteries. In a 1998 report, the World Health Organization (WHO) even regarded the resting places as “special kinds of landfills.”
And like any other kind of landfill, cemeteries pose pollution risks. Yes, there is still a lack of comprehensive studies that have analyzed the potential environmental hazards.
Cristofor – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only
But in certain environments, such as regions that are prone to flooding, contamination dangers are obvious.
Plus, with resting grounds sometimes being converted into playgrounds, parks, or even being surrounded by population-dense developments, environmental scientists have expressed a growing interest in getting to the bottom of what truly lies beneath cemetery grounds.
Primarily, any soil where bodies are buried will differ from surrounding regions. And these hidden signatures can actually last for centuries or even thousands of years. Some researchers have coined these cemetery soils, which carry significantly higher nutrient concentrations, with the name “necrosols.”
Still, one of the more frightening things cemetery soil can contain are actually microbes. And a few documented instances during the nineteenth century will paint the picture of why these microorganisms are so alarming.
Back then, it was not entirely uncommon for cemeteries to contaminate the urban water supply. Cholera, for instance, would often seep from deceased bodies into drinking water.
And in the 1860s, residents of Berlin who lived close to cemeteries were at an increased risk of catching typhoid fever.
And even though these occurrences may seem like a thing of the past, modern cemeteries today are still filled with all kinds of potential contaminants.
For instance, every single year in the United States, over one hundred thousand tons of steel are buried in cemeteries along with the deceased.
Wood preservatives, radioactive medical devices, paints, silver, zinc, bronze, hip replacements, and countless other debris are also stuck underground, too.
We cannot forget about embalming fluid, either, which at one point contained arsenic– and even gradually seeped into the dirt. And the formaldehyde used today– which is a carcinogen– is not much better.
Finally, the corpses themselves will ultimately secrete toxic compounds known as cadaverine and putrescine. These compounds are what cause the foul-smelling odor during decomposition.
And even though decomposition only takes about ten years, many of these pollutants will stick around in the soil for much longer. Trace metals, for example, will virtually never leave. Their concentrations will dilute over time but never disappear.
The greatest cemetery risk posed to the state of public health right now, though, is undoubtedly pathogens. In the past, people assumed that after you put formaldehyde in a body, the pathogens would eventually die off.
However, more recent studies have uncovered all kinds of harmful microbes blooming beneath cemetery grounds– including E. coli, salmonella, B. anthracis (which carries anthrax), and C. perfringens (which can cause foodborne illness).
In one laboratory simulation, E. coli even survived the biocide that was intended to kill the bacteria.
Before the fear of cemetery contamination keeps you up at night, though, it is crucial to note that these toxic waste sites are not posing an immediate risk of danger.
Nonetheless, studies show that cemeteries can harbor many things which can seriously threaten public health– and this raises the question of how to properly put the deceased to rest in both ethical and environmentally friendly ways.
Many researchers now believe that burial is just unsustainable for the long-term health of our population. Of course, though, coming up with an alternative to this age-old practice that is both respectful and environmentally conscious is no easy feat.
Even cremation, the next most popular form of arrangement, is not without its own environmental footprint.
But, in recent years, plenty of new ideas have begun to swirl throughout the public– such as vertical cemeteries, mushroom suits, and even freezing a body before turning it to dust. Just how well they will be accepted into mainstream practice, though, remains to be seen.
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