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Hawaii’s first exclusively “green” cemetery is still years away from being realized, but a local benefactor is helping to accelerate the process.
According to the Rev. Bodhi Be, an ordained interfaith minister and co-founder of Doorway Into Light, which is seeking to buy a $1.75 million plot of land in Haiku for the proposed cemetery, the unnamed Maui resident has pledged to match donations up to a total of $1 million toward the purchase of the property.
As of last week more than $150,000 had been raised, Be said. With the matching donation, the total is $300,000-plus.
The deadline for matching funds was originally March 1, but Be said the donor is likely to push back the date by as much as six months.
The 10.6-acre property, zoned for agricultural use, is at the intersection of Nahele Road and Hana Highway and was previously used as a mixed fruit orchard.
Be said the property met the desired criteria as relatively flat land with no structures, few neighbors and both ocean and mountain views. It also has easy access to electrical power and an established right-of-way from Nahele Road.
He anticipates that once the land has been purchased, the permitting process for the ‘Ipuka Sanctuary Park and Natural Burial Ground — “ipuka” is Hawaiian for door or gateway — will likely take one to two years to complete, providing Doorway Into Light time to raise the “many millions” it will need to fully develop the property.
The master plan is ambitious. In addition to the natural burial ground, ‘Ipuka will eventually include a multiuse building, “memory gardens” (including one dedicated to stillbirths and young children), a flower farm and botanical park, walking paths, a meditation labyrinth, a rock wall to house urns, classrooms, a playground and a pet cemetery.
Be said initial income from the sale of burial plots as well as proceeds from the sale of flowers and farm produce will help fund completion of the project. He said there also will be “legacy” opportunities for donors, including naming rights to benches, gardens and other features.
The nonprofit cemetery will provide a needed alternative to conventional funeral operations that offer an array of often costly services, he said.
The National Funeral Directors Association estimated the national median cost of a funeral with viewing and burial in 2019 at $7,640; for viewing and cremation the figure was $5,150.
“Every culture in Hawaii aligns with a more natural practice for caring for the dead,” Be said. “Many have had the familiar experience of going to a funeral home in grief and leaving feeling like they’ve been sold something.”
Green burial, also called natural burial, allows for bodies to be laid to rest with minimal preparation and in ways that help to minimize environmental impacts.
While methods vary, body preparation typically eschews toxic embalming agents like formaldehyde. Bodies may be interred in biodegradable containers, shrouds, urns or untreated- wood caskets. Green burials also do away with concrete vaults and grave liners, commonly used to keep caskets from sinking or causing the ground to become uneven. Graves usually are marked with flat, engraved stone markers, plants, trees or no marking at all.
The National Funeral Directors Association notes that green burials are trending among environmentally conscious and conservation-minded consumers and aging baby boomers interested in minimizing the cost and negative impacts of conventional burials.
According to a 2019 survey by the trade organization, nearly 52% of respondents said they would be interested in exploring green funeral options because of potential environmental and cost-saving benefits.
“People are more open to hearing about it,” said author Sharon Lund, an early supporter of the ‘Ipuka project. “When I talk about it, people get excited.”
Lund has been active in advocating for reef burials, another green alternative in which remains are encased in environmentally safe housings and submerged offshore to create marine habitats for sea life.
There are an estimated 266 cemeteries in the United States and Canada that accommodate green burials, 71 of which are certified by the Green Burial Council. Most are so-called hybrid cemeteries that offer traditional and green options.
Be is already heavily involved in alternative end-of-life and after-death care and planning via Doorway Into Light, which he founded in 2006 with wife Leilah and prominent spiritual guru and author Ram Dass, who died in December and was cremated according to his wishes.
In 2012 the organization launched The Death Store in the Pauwela Cannery in Haiku. The Green Burial Council-certified funeral home also sells eco-friendly funeral products and serves as a resource center.
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DOORWAY INTO LIGHT
>> Where: The Death Store, 375 W. Kuiaha Road No. 5, Haiku
>> Hours: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays and by appointment
>> Info: Call 283-5950, email info@doorwayintolight.org or visit doorwayintolight.org.
>> How to donate: Send donations to ‘Ipuka Sanctuary Park and Natural Burial Ground project at ipuka.org.
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