Topics of life and death often come into Thursday night pub conversation, but they were explored with greater depth at the Gunner’s Arms on May 18, as the Natural Burial Northern Tasmania group held its inaugural meeting.
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Nearly 20 people attended the gathering which was used to discuss the prospect of natural burial grounds being introduced in the region.
Group co founder Malcolm Cowan said they were able to outline the practicalities of creating the sites.
“We had a couple of funeral directors join us and they took us through what is required in terms of body management and transporting the bodies,” he said.
“There was also someone who had already planned his own natural burial right down to the body bag.
We had a couple of funeral directors join us
- Malcolm Cowan
“It was very informative.”
The group have outlined two possible concepts for the sites; the first involving allotted space in a conventional cemeteries, while the second would be to build on a bush block in a rural area.
Mr Cowan said using space within a cemetery is a more realistic goal for the group at this stage.
“It’s more difficult to maintain perpetuity in a rural area,” he said.
“An easier next step for us would be to approach council regarding conventional grave sites.
“We will build up our social media presence a bit more before we progress further.”
Sean Slatter
Journalist at Fairfax Media based at Launceston.
Journalist at Fairfax Media based at Launceston.
