September 26, 2008

Single-reinforced burial vault features concrete exterior and plastic-reinforced cover and base.

Diversification

Concrete burial vaults divide traditionalists, environmentalists

PETER KENTER

correspondent

MISSISSAUGA, ON

Which specialty construction trade buries almost 15 million tonnes of concrete in North America each year — enough accumulated in total to build a concrete highway from Detroit to New York — because that’s what clients want? It’s the manufacturers of concrete burial vaults, a specialized business serving the funeral industry.

Whether the use of concrete for burial is considered a valuable service or a waste of construction resources depends on your personal view of burial practices.

“From our perspective, it’s just good, quality concrete being sunk into the ground that could be used for something more useful,” says Janet McCausland, executive director of Canada’s Natural Burial Association. “The concrete vault and the people who are buried there will be using that plot of earth forever.”

The association is promoting what it considers “green burials” in cemeteries that encourage decay, not prevent it. The association wants to see the establishment of natural cemeteries such as the Irish Hill Road cemetery in Ithaca, New York where the deceased have the option of being buried directly in the ground without a vault or coffin.

But concrete vaults are used in traditional cemeteries for a number of reasons.

“The vault protects the remains of the loved one and prevents embalming fluid from leeching into the aquifer in the surrounding neighbourhood,” says Tom Monahan, executive director of the National Concrete Burial Vault Association, which represents vault manufacturers across North America. Monahan says that in most areas of the United States and Canada, a cemetery requires the casket to be enclosed within a burial vault for logistical reasons.

“The weight of the earth and heavy equipment used to dig graves exceeds what an unprotected casket can withstand,” he says. “A burial vault made of reinforced concrete is designed to support the weight of the earth, the weight of a backhoe and the shock produced by the dropping of a backhoe bucket. Without a vault, an indentation on the site would cause a safety hazard for construction vehicles. The construction of the vaults is governed by ASTM load standards.”

In addition, the vaults can help support the surrounding soil when backhoes dig new plots between existing graves.

Concrete vaults can range in design from a simple box to something more ornate and can be lined with plastic or metal.

“Traditionally, a burial vault is a structure poured in a mold containing a plastic liner, with a lid or cover,” says Richard Snyder, president of the Superior Vault Company in Mississauga. Snyder says he uses the same type of concrete employed in retaining walls or bridges with retaining wire strengthening the base.

“It’s a lot like pouring a concrete step,” he says. “We have an inventory of about 400 vaults at any given time, which is necessary because they take about 20 to 30 days to cure to full potential strength. With that inventory, I can fill an order immediately.”

Businesses providing the vaults are usually local, because it isn’t economical to deliver them over long distances.

“For some, the concrete vault is supposed to provide an extra level of protection for the remains,” says McCausland. “I just don’t understand what the appeal of that protection is. The earth has to deal with the concrete in the ground for something that will eventually decay.”

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