[OKC] Green Burial Council Petitions FTC For Stricter Standards

[Shauna Struby]

Green Burial Council Petitions Federal Trade Commission to Help Combat

"Greenwashing" in Funeral Service Industry

National leader in education and advocacy for environmentally sustainable
end-of-life options calls for stricter standards and accountability to
protect consumers

 

Santa Fe, NM - March 3, 2011 - The Green Burial Council, a tax-exempt,
nonprofit organization and the standard-bearer for green burial in North
America, today announced that it is formally petitioning the Federal Trade
Commission (FTC) to assist in evaluating organizations involved in
standard-setting and/or programs aiming to connect consumers with burial
grounds, funeral homes and product manufacturers.

 

"The green burial movement has opened up choices for consumers in funeral
service that only a minority of Americans knew were options just a few years
ago" said Joe Sehee, Executive Director of the Green Burial Council. "But
the growing number of associations and for-profit 'dot orgs' entering this
arena suggests that a great deal of 'greenwashing' could be coming our way.
We'd like to see the FTC take a hard look at all these organizations,
starting with our own."

 

Green burial is a way of caring of the dead that can further such
environmental aims as the reduction of carbon emissions, conservation of
natural resources, protection of worker health and preservation of habitat.
False claims of environmental benefits have long been a concern among
responsible organizations and industry-watchers, as evidenced by a recent
webinar on greenwashing co-sponsored by the Green Burial Council and the
FTC.

 

The FTC recently updated its "green guides" (click here
<http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/microsites/energy/about_guides.shtml>  to view),
which are intended to inform both consumers and businesses on how to
recognize empty or false claims. The agency is warning the public to be
skeptical about a number of issues including the proliferation of
eco-certification programs run by entities that do not establish verifiable
standards and/or are too closely associated with interested parties.

 

About the Green Burial Council: The Green Burial Council is an independent,
tax-exempt, nonprofit organization working to encourage environmentally
sustainable end-of-life rituals and the use of burial as a new means of
protecting natural areas. They have set forth the first set of standards and
implemented a new rating rating system for almost all aspects of
eco-friendly funeral service.  The Green Burial Council is funded by
contributions from individuals, certification fees and a grant from the Roy
M. Hunt Foundation. Approved providers can be found in 40 states and five
provinces throughout North America. To learn more, go to
www.greenburialcouncil.org <http://www.greenburialcouncil.org/> .

 

 

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