This machine is turning corpses into soil, planting trees with houses

                     The body is turned into soil through such a capsule.

Laura Makenhopt brought the body of her 22-year-old son, Miles, in a truck. But there is no way to tell if it is her son. Because his body has been turned into soil. A Washington company turned her son's frozen body into about 150 kilograms of soil. And she returned home with this soil. Later, she placed it in the yard of her house and planted flowers there.

A company called 'Earth Funeral' is doing this work. Its CEO Tom Harris said, the way the body gradually turns into soil after burial. This is exactly how it happens. But we are only accelerating the process. This is favorable for the climate and the earth. Because the carbon emissions that are released when a body is cremated are less than when it is done. On the other hand, the chemicals that are used for burial. In this case, that is not done.

The soil made from Mile's body has been placed in the garden of his home. A rose tree has been planted in that soil. And most of the soil has been placed next to Mile's favorite chair.

                   Mile (far left) and his family

His mother, Makenhopt, said, "Every time the rose bud comes out, I look at it with great interest. It's a gift. It's like Mile has come for a short time. It's extraordinary."

"It's different than cremation or burial. In those cases, you have a funeral. Then it's over. And the story begins with the body being turned into soil," added Makenhopt.

How bodies are turned into soil

Tom Harris, CEO of Earth Funerals, has worked in the funeral industry for many years. But he came up with the idea of ​​turning bodies into soil after thinking about his own death. He didn't want to be cremated or buried after he died.

In the United States, cremation is now the most popular method (about 60 percent) because it is more cost-effective than burial.

But cremation is environmentally damaging. Burial, on the other hand, uses chemicals. This is also environmentally damaging.

 Wood chips, wildflowers, and wet straw and leaves from tree roots help turn the body into soil.

Tom Harris explained how the body is turned into soil. He said that it takes very little time. The body is wrapped in a sterile shroud. And it is placed in a long iron capsule. The body is given wood chips, wet straw and leaves from the tree roots, and wildflowers. When the body starts turning into soil, it releases nitrogen. On the other hand, the wood and tree roots release carbon. Since the capsule is kept at a certain temperature, the body turns into soil. Which takes 45 days to complete. About 150 kilograms of soil is then turned into soil. Harris said family members can take as much soil as they want, and the rest is sent to nature reserves in Washington and California, where plants grow.