A strange legislation on USA it essentially allows its citizens to bury their dead relative in the sea, saving the huge costs of funerals and memorial services, with the rationale that it is environmentally friendly.
The American mortuary industry is very expensive. Everything is overpriced. The average casket will cost between $2.000 and $5.000, and the cost of a cremation averages between $4.000 and $7.000 per body. And not including the memorial service.
But US law allows you to drown your loved one at sea for free. Unbelievable that it already works. Over 2.500 peoplea they chose this one choice funeral only in 2020 and mainly in Florida.
There are Companies that offer full sea burial services, but their prices are also quite high there. But you can legally do it yourself, as long as you have access to a boat. All you need is a free license and the means to take the deceased and drop them three miles off shore (about 5,5km).
According to the US Environmental Protection Agency (ERA), the ecologically sound and poetic choice of a sea burial is perfectly legal, both for cremated and uncremated remains. The Marine Protection Act gives general permits to citizens to dispose of dead bodies far out to sea.
Of course, there are some rules in the process. You can't drop your aunt into, say, a local lake or water park. For most of the country, burials at sea must take place at least three nautical miles from land and in ocean waters that are at least 180 meters deep.
Some places require deeper water, up to the 550 meter mark, but for the most part, as long as you're three miles out and the water is deep, no one will care.
Getting to the shore with your loved one is a different story. There are local and state laws that cover the transportation of uncremated human remains and they vary by state, so your best bet is to arrange transportation to the coast with a funeral home.
Because no one wants to retrieve a carcass while deep net fishing, the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) recommends wrapping the carcass in a "natural fiber cover" and adding extra weight, such as a steel chain, to make sure it stay at the bottom.
If you choose to bury your loved one in a casket, the first step is to remove any non-biodegradable material such as plastics etc. You should then add some sand or concrete to facilitate the sinking. And finally drill holes in the coffin according to the ERA instructions.
You don't need to get a federal permit before burying your loved one at sea, but once you've done the deed, you have 30 days to tell the EPA what you've done. There is one Burial at Sea online reporting system that you can use.
You say we should see something like this in Greece;
