A family we are friends with are caretakers at a cemetery. Cremation is a huge headache for them, as people will buy a plot and try to inter four or more cremated remains there (state law is one person per plot). Or they will dump the ashes out by the flower bed or pond. Which makes a situation where they have to be cleaned up, and at times you can see that the ashes have identifiable pieces in them.
Embalming is another issue. It is pretty much mandated by law.
“Embalming is another issue. It is pretty much mandated by law.”
Actually that’s a myth pushed very aggressively by the funeral industry. Most states have no laws requiring embalming. Federal law requires it only when shipping bodies across state lines or between the United States and a foreign country. If you can find a copy (many libraries will have one) I suggest reading The American Way of Death by the late Jessica Mitford. It’s a brutal expose of the funeral industry.