Conservation Burial Initiative
Our conservation burial program will be another conservation and restoration tool that will help us restore land that's been disturbed, return it to a natural state, and keep it natural and open forever.
Developing a New Conservation Burial Program
After investigating the potential for and gauging community interest in a conservation burial program offering natural burial services here in Jefferson County, the Land Trust’s Board of Directors granted approval for the Land Trust to move forward in creating a conservation burial program in early 2021. In late 2022, the Olympic Wildland Burial Grounds LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Land Trust, was formed to focus on building and managing the program.
Wildland burial grounds and memorial forests are places where family and friends can go to honor and remember a loved one in a natural setting. Over time, we plan to incorporate both of these models in our conservation burial program.
A Good Fit — Land Trusts and Conservation Burial Programs
Through their research, the working committee found that land trust involvement with conservation burial programs have multiple benefits, including advancing land conservation, serving the greater community, and creating an additional revenue stream for conservation and stewardship. These benefits, combined with strong community interest, prompted the committee to recommend that we move forward with our own program.
There are a number of reasons why conservation burial programs are a good fit for land trusts. Protecting land, and often restoring and caring for it forever, is at the heart of what we do. And that long-term protection and care are just what wildland burial grounds and memorial forests require.
The conservation burial program will be another conservation and restoration tool that will help us restore land that's been disturbed, return it to a natural state, and keep it natural and open forever. The proceeds from conservation burials will be used to restore and maintain the wildland burial ground and memorial forest properties and also to advance future conservation work throughout Jefferson County.
Next Steps:
- Work with regulatory agencies to permit conservation burial activities, and then acquire appropriate property
- Establish operational plans and policies
- Hire conservation burial ground and memorial forest manager
Want to Stay Informed?
Please fill out this form to let us know you’re interested in learning more about the Land Trust’s conservation burial program as it continues to develop.