There is no law that specifies the scattering of ashes on ordinary land or in rivers, but it is technically illegal to put the ashes on someone else’s land or in rivers without the owner’s permission.

The Environmental Protection Agency published a policy about the scattering of ashes to protect the environment. This law particularly deals with spreading of ashes on rivers and streams. There is no evidence that the disposal of human ashes in rivers and streams can have a negative impact on the environment; however, the non-biodegradable items like metal and plastic can cause damage.

The rich mineral concentrations in cremated remains can also have a bad effect on the soils and eventually on the plants. We greenies often advise people not to dump ashes on mountain tops, where ashes can affect fresh plant life.

You must have seen the ashes floating over the sea. You can use sea as the fastest way to the greatest dispersal. If you want to scatter the ashes far and wide, then the sea is appropriate. However you cannot build a memorial at sea and it does not give us a place that you can visit. You can build a memorial at a comfortable place to visit when you are going to scatter ashes in the sea.

Read more about: Burying Your Pet, Naturally

Many different approaches can be used to scatter the ashes. A few of them are:

Casting

Casting is a method of scattering in which the remains are tossed into the wind. Here you need to check the direction of the wind. Now, you have to cast the remains downwind. In this method some of the remains will fall to the ground whereas the lighter particles will blow in the wind.

It is also permissible that one person in the group may scatter some and give the container to the next person. In this way, everyone will get a chance to ceremonially cast the remains. There is one more option in which people are given paper cups or casting cups and they scatter simultaneously just like a toasting gesture.

Trenching

Trenching refers to digging a hole in the ground. The remains are then put into the trench. You can put the remains directly into the trench or place it in a biodegradable urn or bag. When the ceremony gets completed, the survivors often rake over the trench. The name of the deceased person can be drawn in the dirt or sand. You can also take a photo of this for a memory book. Family and friends can also join hands to form a circle. If there is not much wind, you can light the candles around the site. You can give candles to each person as a keepsake.

Raking

Raking refers to discharging the cremated remains from an urn on loose soil. You have to rake them into the ground at the end of the ceremony. It is advisable to keep the urn close to the ground while pouring the remains on the ground due to wind.

Many people during their lifetime request that following cremation, their ashes be scattered at a specific location. In other cases it is the relatives of the deceased that make this decision.

It might be assumed that the practice of scattering ashes will have no lasting effect on the immediate environment. However if ashes are repeatedly scattered over a limited area this can bring about changes to plant life. Many plants can tolerate only a narrow range of soil acidity or alkalinity, and many are sensitive to the concentration of certain mineral elements. The ashes of human remains are rich in both calcium and phosphorus. Elevated concentrations of these elements can stimulate the growth of some plant species, but adversely affect others.

Photo credit: allynfolksjr.

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So why is formaldehyde in these products if it is so bad? Because it is a perfect preserving agent. It keeps things “fresh” in a very ironic way. Phthalates, similar to formaldehyde, work as softeners in personal care products such as cosmetics and shampoo, as well as flexible plastics like children’s toys. There’s little debate that formaldehyde can pose health risks. Short-term exposure can cause skin irritation from physical contact or irritated eyes, and burning in the nose when inhaled.

The long-term effects found that formaldehyde exposure caused cancer in rats, the Environmental Protection Agency classified the chemical as a “probable carcinogen.” The International Agency for Research on Cancer has classified formaldehyde as a human carcinogen.

Read More About the Dangers Lurking in Personal Care Products

Caution needs to be taken when selecting the wide range of products labeled and marketed as natural. By labeling themselves as “Natural,” “Organic” or “Herbal,” there can still be other chemicals lurking unbeknownst to the unsuspecting consumer of these products.

Here are some sources to make sure your favorite personal care goods are personally good for you:

Whole Foods Market Premium Body Care Standards: Developed by Whole Foods market to evaluate natural products sold in their stores. You may choose to adopt either the Basic or the Premier standard, or some combination thereof.

Mother Earth's The Ban List: 7 Ingredients to Avoid in Personal-Care Products

Another product which heavily contains Formaldehyde is embalming fluid. A likely carcinogenic that should not be making its way into the environment, green embalming fluids can be used. Instead of the traditional formaldehyde based fluids, green embalming fluids are comprised of all natural plant based extracts. Usually made from essential oils that will adequately preserve the body for up to several weeks, green embalming is not only healthier for the Earth, but also for the funeral home employees preparing the body.

The human body decomposes rapidly after death. Care must be taken to keep the body as cool as possible to slow the decomposition that results in noxious odors and the leakage of body fluids from body orifices. Alternatives do exist for keeping a body long enough for a funeral, such as keeping the body in dry ice or refrigerated.

When caring for your own dead at home before burial or cremation, cooling is a must. It is easy to keep a body cool for three days or more that way. That is about the same length of time it takes to get a death certificate, the official document that allows burial. You need to deal with transportation issues from the place of death and to the cemetery, and those vary by state, but home burial can and is being done now. A human body can be kept in a cool room for at least 24 hours before decomposition begins.

Dry Ice can be used instead of refrigeration if necessary. Dry ice is frozen carbon dioxide. A block of dry ice has a surface temperature of -109.3 degrees Fahrenheit (-78.5 degrees C). Dry ice also has the very nice feature of sublimation — as it breaks down, it turns directly into carbon dioxide gas rather than a liquid. The super-cold temperature and the sublimation feature make dry ice great for refrigeration. For example, if you want to send something frozen across the country, you can pack it in dry ice. It will be frozen when it reaches its destination, and there will be no messy liquid left over like you would have with normal ice. Careful! While dry ice looks like it would be cold, it's extremely dangerous to the touch and can cause severe burns.

Read About 8 Things To Consider When Dealing with a Pet’s Death

On average, one needs about 15 pounds of dry ice for each day the body needs to be refrigerated. The dry ice bricks need to be replaced approximately every 12 hours, depending on factors such as the room temperature and size of the body.

To prepare the dry ice, each piece should be about the size of a brick or two, wrapped in cloth (you must use thick leather or cloth gloves when handling dry ice!). Put one piece in the following places: under the upper back, in the small of the back, and one each at either side of the torso, alongside the body. If the deceased is a large person, you may want more dry ice to ensure adequate cooling. Once the body is ready for the vigil, place a favorite bedspread or other cloths over and around it; the cloths will serve to hide the dry ice from view. The effect should be tranquil, peaceful, and beautiful.

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I beat a quick path to the ladies room while he was enjoying the gift center. Someone left a copy of “Chant and Be Happy” written by A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada on the paper towel dispenser. I waited through several toilet flushing cycles to see if anyone claimed the book, or if the rightful owner might pop back thru the door in a panic. No one ever glanced at it. Maybe I was the rightful owner? Stephen was still inside playing with blow-up brontosaurus twenty minutes later when I snuggled into the front seat with my new-found spiritual gift.

The sun was rising on Going-to-the-Sun Road heading out of the town of St. Mary toward Glacier National Park. Everything about my geographical space and time aligned beautifully with what I was reading. And starting to chant. The word phrasing of “Nam-myoho-renge-kyo” came easily to me; I found I could focus my sight on the glorious landscape ahead while setting an intention, while I was rhythmically repeating the mantra and drinking in the feeling of peace and love as the car floated on.

Read More Yoga and Adrenal Fatigue

Chanting is a natural form of prayer. Just words, intention, energy and spirit. All required is mindful concentration and an open heart. I tread lightly since I am no expert, but chanting has grand benefits attainable to all who incant.

According to the laws of Buddhism, the 13th-century priest Nichiren established the practice of chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. He concluded that the Lotus Sutra contains the full truth of Buddhism: that everyone without exception has the potential to attain Buddhahood. The title of the Lotus Sutra in its Japanese translation is Myoho-renge-kyo. By chanting "Nam," or devotion to the essential message of the Lotus Sutra, we activate the state of Buddhahood in our lives. Rather than being a prayer to an external being, chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is an expression of the determination of the human spirit, seeking to come into rhythm with the reality of the universe. Through continuing in this practice of determined intention we bring forth our highest potential from within our lives.

But does chanting make me a Buddhist, you may ask? Chanting doesn’t make you Buddhist anymore than doing Yoga makes you a Hindu. But the hours you spend sitting in zazen on a tatami mat or perfecting your Downward Dog in the sand could be intensified with the Om chant. Coming from Hinduism and Yoga, the Om mantra is considered to have high spiritual and creative power but despite this, it is a mantra that can be recited by anyone.

Read More About Meditation

It is said improves your concentration and helps you focus on whatever your goals may be. This single word produces the sound and vibration which allows you to feel at one with the universe. Chanting of the Om Mantra purifies the environment around you and creates positive vibrations.

Also, the vibrations and cadenced articulation also have a physical consequence on the body by slowing down the nervous system and calming the mind similar to meditation. When the mind is relaxed, your blood pressure decreases and ultimately the health of your heart improves.

I chant to truly do my mission on this earth. Good intentions change the world, right? According to my experience, I create happy sound energy while I build my own mantra which I find becomes more comfortable than any other popular mantras. For each of us, there is a unique mantra that you can connect to. Find out your own rhythm. It can be a prayer, a sacred song, or just meaningful words.

Chant your chosen words or chant silently in your mind. You can do this any place you want. No special alter or rug is needed. Chanting be done at any time, in any posture, while lying in bed, driving the car, standing in line or grocery shopping. Keep on trying to chant uninterruptedly. If the mind wanders, bring it back to your chant, without feeling frustrated. Gradually, chanting will become a habit, happening naturally, just like an unexpected gift in the ladies’ room.

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If this is the option that works for you, you may want to check in with any local ordinances that may prohibit this if you plan on interring anything larger than a hamster, canary or goldfish. To guard against any possible diseases always use extreme caution when handling animal remains whether or not your pet had been ill. Use universal precautions to reduce exposure to disease, ticks, mosquitoes, and fleas.

Some tips on handling a deceased pet’s remains:

• Wear protective clothing
• Avoid eating and drinking near or while handling remains.
• Wear disposable rubber or plastic gloves while handling remains.
• Wear a protective mask to prevent the inhalation of fungal spores.
• All clothing worn while handling remains should be scrubbed with soap, detergent, or bleach.
• Safely dispose disposable by double bagging soiled items in labeled outdoor garbage bags.

It is perhaps a good idea to wait 3 hours before burial if your pet has just died. Rigor mortis usually sets in within 3 hours and stays with for a number of days. However, this is much more obvious in mammals than in reptiles. A motionless snake could just be sleeping after a large meal.

If you catch the body during the time just after death, you will be able to pose or arrange the body in compact or restful position that will be set for a number of days after. Bathing the body in warm water and massaging the muscles can loosen up some of the muscles, allowing some repositioning.

Read more: Forest Burials Help Conserve Ecosystems

Some families opt to bury their pet at a cemetery designated specifically just for pets. A good thing to keep in mind is that many cemeteries restrict burial to the summer months because the ground is too hard to dig during the winter or in the snow. However, pet burial is far shallower than requirements for human burial, so there should not be issues that arise from your backyard interment.

Over the years, burials at pet cemeteries have become more socially accepted as they model themselves, in large part, on human cemeteries and attend to maintenance, landscaping and supportive services.

Pet Cemeteries and Burial Grounds

1. Hybrid cemetery: a portion of the cemetery is a conventional mixed-media cemetery, with another section dedicated to green burials (i.e., interment in certified eco-friendly container or shroud). Without a dedicated section, there is little appeal for those seeking a more natural burial.

2. Low-impact cemetery: the entire cemetery has a policy of only using eco-friendly containers or shrouds in a park-like setting. Additionally, the cemetery adopts a program of Integrated Pest Management (IPM). Above the surface, these cemeteries may appear to look like traditional cemeteries or memorial parks.

3. Natural burial ground: same as a Low-impact Cemetery but in a more natural environment (e.g., little landscaping, no irrigation, modest or no markers). This cemetery provides a more naturalistic experience.

4. Conservation burial ground/wildlife sanctuary: a natural environment regulated in partnership with a nonprofit conservation organization or government agency. Such lands provide havens for native wildlife (important to any lover of animals!) and encourage natural flora to become reestablished. Depending on the condition of the land, as well as local wildlife populations, the preserve may require reconstruction activities. This may involve human-made structures such as those that provide shelter, facilitate breeding, or serve as feeding stations. If such structures are to be permanent, they may also serve as markers for particular graves.

Read more: Scattering Ashes: Safe for the Environment?

Memorial Displays

Ask kids to find objects around the yard to decorate the grave. Provide each child with a collection bag and ask them to collect – shells, flowers, feathers, bark, acorns, leaves, twigs, stones, berries, and keepsake objects such as leashes, collars, and even pictures or drawings made in honor of your pet. Touching, smelling, and assembling a memorial display of their own in honor of a dear friend teaches a respect for the dead and the family grave site reaffirms the importance their loss to the family as a whole.

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Yes, the vagina is a self-cleaning organ, but just because you don't have to tend to your lady bits with wacky treatments doesn't mean they wouldn't appreciate a stress-reducing vaginal steam bath.

Read more: Killing Candida and Making Vaginas Happy with Probiotics 

Many Eastern Asian women commonly steam after their monthly periods. The vaginal steam is a centuries-old technique that's been gaining popularity in holistic practices, physical therapy clinics and spas.

I first heard of the vagina steam bath a few years ago. Like most with a vagina, I was straightaway inquisitive about it. I thought vajazzling was over the top. First there was labia dye, and but now the latest spa treatment, the "Vajacial," a facial for your vagina, is ramping up. It’s truly what’s up down there.

Salespeople tend to exploit the idea that vaginas are gross and not worthy of discussion. But you’ve got to love Californians – they’re always so ahead of the trends when it comes to things like style. And environmentalism. And vaginal steam baths.

Niki Han Schwarz, owner of Tikkun Holistic Spa in Santa Monica, California told AOL News that she's been offering the herbal "V-Steam" cleanses for several months at her spa, but the origins of "chai-yok" can be traced back to Korea.

"It's been around for 600 years in Korea, but it's new to us in the west. Traditional Korean spas have always offered chai-yok, and Korean women get it done regularly," explained Schwarz.

"All of the herbs in the tea are antifungal and antibacterial. They rid your body of toxins and pesticides, fight infections and even help clear up hemorrhoids. Your body also aches less after you've had a few steams.”

Would I be very disturbed by the image of all sorts of horrific toxins emanating from my baby maker, all stimulated by steam, coming out in some sort of nasty cloud? I knew I needed a steaming for my hoo ha before I could answer that question.

Read more: Oil Pulling: Should You Try this Ancient Detox Method?

The next morning I was sitting on an open-seated stool over a boiling caldron of herbs. In my small room dedicated to the ancient technique, I threw my clothes in the corner, enfolded a blanket around my stomach so that it draped to the ground and created something reminiscent of a gazebo. I then crouched on a low seat that had a hole cut out of the middle, my one-hour rented vagi-stool.

The mist felt neither good nor bad; rather, it felt exactly like what you’d imagine steam on your vagina would feel like. Warm, weird, and cleansing. But I was psyched that I was getting rid of toxins, flushing out my pubic area and cleansing my whole body.

Read more: Johnson's Baby Powder Linked to Ovarian Cancer

Wanna take a beauty bath at home?

Get a regular chair and a wooden toilet seat. Boil 8 cups of water, add a handful of fresh herbs or 1/4 cup dry ones, and steep for about 10 minutes. If you don’t have a vagi-stool, pour half the water into a bowl (leave the rest of the water on the stovetop, covered, so you’ll be ready for a second round) and place the bowl in your toilet. Let the water cool for a bit to be sure the steam is warm and not scalding. Tent yourself with a towel or blanket and sit down on the toilet. Stay there for about 10 minutes, until all of the steam has evaporated and you feel your bath is complete. Dump the water; if you still want more, replace it with the hotter stuff from the stove.

Fresh as a flower!

The post A Detox Facial… for Your Vagina appeared first on NaturallySavvy.com.

Goats ignore poisonous plants most of the time, but because of their need to browse, they may try them just for variety. Whether a goat that eats a poisonous plant shows signs of poisoning depends on how much of the plant it eats, what part of the plant it eats, the condition of the plant (fresh or dried), the time of year, and the size and health of the goat. Prior to moving in goats is the time to learn what is growing on your land.

The Perfect Lawn Care Solution? Maybe Not.

There is a collective inaccuracy with many people who think that a goat will offer an answer to trimming their lawn. While goats undoubtedly will create a fair indent in a lawn, it is not the supreme fit arrangement for either the goats or the grass owner. A green lawn is feasibly the lowermost order of brush control. They will eat the grass but would rather eat your rose bushes, flowers, the trees you just planted.

It is a fact that a goat will graze on your regular lawn grass but the shortcomings to this are substantial. Goats will not evenly trim the grass to look manicured. If you are considering goats for the job, don't expect your lawn to look proper as golf course greens. These eco-mowers will frequently leave behind bulky or spindly stalks that they reject for whatever reason. Perhaps a goat knows that leaving a few of these outsized stubbles will produce more seeds to supply the next crop of lawn grass and weeds, or perhaps they just don’t taste good.

Lawn grass (while nutritious in many ways) should not be the complete nutritive source for the animal. There are numerous categories of grasses as well, each with its own nourishing physiognomies. A goat needs a range of nutrition that will provide the necessary vitamins, proteins and fiber to balance the goat's intake fully and to sustain suitable well-being. An additional food source such as a hay feeder would be worthy. Be warned that they tend to waste a lot, either from urinating or defecating on it. And this kind of waste matter tends to get rather odiferous after a short period of time.

With much planning you may achieve some very good results. By using the waste matter such as the uneaten and wasted hay, you can create the start of a stellar compost pile. But in reality there are a couple of other things to think about as well; goats tend to paw at the ground and will not stop until they are at the dirt. They are digging themselves a nice, comfortable place to lie.

Perhaps the perfect arrangement for using a goat to supplement your lawn care program would be to have the lawn area fenced in and to then allow the goat to browse the lawn by day, sleep elsewhere, and of course have the secondary food source in the evening. Or, you can rent a goat! Services such as Rent-a-Goat, Eco-Goats and We Rent Goats provide goats to clear noxious weeds from your lawn.

Goats Vs. Lawn Mowers

Goats are Versatile: Goats can be used effectively in almost any location or terrain type, especially in terrain too rocky or steep for human or machine clearing. Goat cleared areas are significantly more attractive.

Goats are Cost Effective: Goats are one of the most cost effective brush and weed abatement resources per contracted area.

Goats are Environmentally Safe: Goats are an environmentally friendly method for clearing areas containing invasive vegetation. Thinning by goats is a natural method resulting in a naturally balanced environment over the long term.

Goats are Quiet: Goats are far less intrusive than mechanical clearing tools. Which would you rather hear…? The loud noise of heavy equipment, or the quiet grazing of goats?

Elizabeth Fournier is affectionately known as The Green Reaper in her tiny community of Boring, Oregon. She is the owner of Cornerstone Funeral Services and works as a green mortician, educator and advocate who is always ready to lend a hand, or a shovel. She is the voice of the autopsy exhibit in the forensic wing at the United States National Museum of Medicine, and recently published her memoir, "All Men Are Cremated Equal: My 77 Blind Dates."

Photo credits: plagal, dmscvan

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We are familiar with the concept that we can "vote with our dollars," also that we can "vote with our feet," but really, we can also "vote with our bodies." Access to green burial grounds and services have started to expand as more people look for alternatives to conventional death care and creative ways to protect natural areas from development. And by choosing a disposition option that protects land from development, we are in a sense voting with our bodies.

The latest green guardians to offer natural burial services is Herland Burial Forest, nestled on a mountain slope in the State of Washington. Their approach to stewardship is from the standpoint of being akin to the wildlife that inhabit this particular forest.

All living things affect their environment, always. Every action is in response to a shifting foundation. It is within this dynamic that creatures find ways to survive, and are selected for their fitness to the changing ecosystem.

As the woodland develops, it will become an increasingly attractive place for family and friends to visit. It is an essential leap that communities are going to have to make if they desire to understand how ecosystems operate.

Natural burial grounds are open to all. They are seldom linked to any one religion or belief, although individual graves can be consecrated as desired. They offer an environmentally friendly, cost effective, and permanent alternative to traditional funerals, cemeteries, and graveyards.

Herland Forest is a manifestation of these values, and a way for ecologically compassionate people to make a final contribution to the next generation of Earth stewards. To keep the rolling stone moving onward, we can use our bodies as a barrier to development, and also in support of ecological understanding of community and cultural evolution.

Although the burial forest is managed by a community collective, they believe that their values and world view are similar to those of the people who seek out natural burial options. The baby boom generation who came of age in the '60s and '70s are credited with attempting to redefine the American commercial-consumer values, and they grew up in an increasingly complex technological/marketing society—a culture that had, en masse, lost contact with the Earth as the foundation for human life. A relationship with death and dying is a big part of this. It is more and more apparent that, as William Ralph Inge said, "The whole of nature, as has been said, is a conjugation of the verb to eat, in the active and in the passive."

The giving life and death happens simultaneously. Death in the pathway to new life. All life building upon one another, creating more of a context for life. An ever-evolving spiral. Life and death all the time, the predator is always on the hunt. The raven is always looking for a meal. We must fill our bellies, and in turn fill the bellies of others, be it micro organisms, plants, insects, fungi, animals, whatever. All of nature is a graveyard.

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When you think about it, that's a lot of nine-feet by four-feet plots. New green think-tankers believe we should move away from our practice of digging horizontal burial plots in favor of a more space-conscious, vertical burial plot. If this were the case we could bury twice as many people in the same space.

People who choose a vertical burial will be placed in biodegradable shrouds and buried in cylindrical holes, feet first. It's different, but there are many who are embracing this idea.

Cancer victim Allan Heywood received his dying wish this week and was buried upright in a biodegradable body bag in what is claimed to be Australia's greenest cemetery.

A spokesman for Melbourne-based firm Upright Burials said that Heywood, 64, got in ahead of more than 100 people who have since registered with the start-up company.

Upright Burials managing director Tony Dupleix said Heywood was the first person in Australia to be lowered feet first into a cylindrical grave 70 centimeters wide and three meters deep. The hole, the first of what Dupleix hopes will be 30,000, was dug with a rotary augur, a machine usually used to drill holes for power poles.

There is no marker or headstone for Heywood in the plot. The location of his grave is identified only by coordinates and a grid reference on the gate of the Kurweeton Road Cemetery. For Heywood, as for every other corpse that goes in the ground, a tree will be planted on a nearby hill.

"From the outset we questioned the need to bury people horizontally and in such a carbon-intensive manner," Dupleix said. "Most people are attracted by the simplicity of the project and the concept of being far more in touch with nature."

This option does have a lower cost—about $2,000 compared with about $7,000 for a conventional burial—and for space-saving and environmental reasons.

The Jewish faith is becoming cozy with the idea, for vertical burial happens in Jerusalem, and all burials conducted in the city have been carried out in accordance with Jewish law.

A Malaysian state is also considering burying people vertically because it is running out of cemetery space. Malaysia's Muslim majority does not accept cremation, unlike members of the minority religious groups of Buddhists, Hindus and Christians.

The plan to bury people upright has its critics in the funeral industry, with some claiming the practice is disrespectful to the dead. I can see how it kind of ruins the image of eternal rest. But I also like that think being interred in an upright orientation would make one much more aerodynamic, making it easier to float to Heaven more quickly.

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School supplies were a far second thought to my cute boyfriends. I, in fact, adored my pearl pink erasers and pink Trapper Keeper, but who really cared about pens and pencils when Eric Estrada was riding his police motorcycle in CHIPS?

But now I have a little person who I am trying to raise in an eco-conscious home, so pens and pencils matter a lot more. Each year 80,000 trees are destroyed to produce more than 14 billion pencils. It is cool to see eco-friendly innovators replacing virgin wood with recycled newspaper. This solution saves trees, reduces our carbon footprint and brings us closer to a more sustainable world.

All pencils in my house and funeral home are made out of recycled newspapers, and the varieties are made with high-quality HB graphite—the lead has then been encased in the rolled-up, recycled newspaper. Whole newspaper sheets are rolled around a high quality No. 2 lead. No mulching or mixing with toxic chemical is required. A special adhesive formula is used to bind the newsprint together into a cohesive trunk—as hard as wood. Approximately four pencils can be made from one broadsheet of recycled newsprint. After drying, the pencils are smoothed to a consistent round barrel. Newsprint images are still visible on the pencil surface, and they sharpen quite easily. Just like wood.

But if your little person needs to smell their words, then Smencil Pencils (in 10 flavors!) might be just the right choice. These are also sheets of recycled newspaper which are tightly rolled around the No. 2 graphite writing cores until pencils of typical thickness are formed. Then they're hardened, allowing them to be sharpened just like wood pencils. Next, they are soaked in gourmet liquid scents. Once they're dry, they are attached with the erasers and stickers are applied around them that identify which scent was infused into each Smencil. They have their own fragrance tube with scrumptious scents, such as Bubble Gum, Cinnamon, Tropical Blast, Grape, and Root beer. Ten lip smackers in all.

If color is what you are after, the Wildlife Series Color Pencils feature 12 different animal designs, each representing a different color. Animals and colors contained in the set are Turtle (green), Zebra (black), Parrot (red), Alligator (dark green), Leopard (yellow), Tiger (orange), Snake (light brown), Bear (dark brown), Kingfisher (blue), Starfish (pink), Hummingbird (light blue), and Marine Fish (purple). Each pencil comes with its own distinctive painted-on animal design, and the top inch of the pencil displays the name of the animal on the pencil in solid color. And most importantly, the barrel is made from 100% recycled newspaper.

It's that simple to go green while you write. Just remember to use both sides of the paper!

More on Eco-Living from Naturally Savvy

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It has been a long-held belief that cremation is a very green choice. Although cremation uses far fewer resources than almost any other disposition option, it also has an environmental impact and "carbon footprint." So is cremation really an eco-friendly form of disposition?

According to the Green Burial Council, cremation burns fossil fuel and some older cremation facilities can use significantly more energy compared to newer ones. Mercury is also emitted when a person with dental amalgam fillings is cremated, though just how much mercury is widely debated.

So what choice does a greenie have who really does not want to be put in the ground? A little-known method is on the rise and scratching the surface of the U.S. market—water resomation. Rather than cremation with fire, water dissolves dead bodies in an environmentally friendly way through alkaline hydrolysis, a process involving a combination of water pressure, heat, and alkalinity (acid neutralization) that is more familiarly known as bio-cremation or aquafication.

Water resomation accelerates the natural disintegration process through alkaline hydrolysis, sympathetically returning the body to ash. Unlike cremation, it produces a natural, contaminant-free byproduct. This is an environmentally sustainable development—and the bio-responsible option.

In alkaline hydrolysis, an individual body is gently placed in water in a stainless steel chamber. Heat, pressure, and potassium hydroxide are added to dissolve the tissue. The corpse is placed in a stainless steel pressurized tube that is then filled with the key ingredients and heated to 330 degrees. After a few hours, all that remains is the skeleton, so soft that it can be ground into ash by hand. The process results in a non-harmful sterile liquid that can be disposed of at a water treatment plant.

The entire process is complete in about the same time as fire-based cremation, regardless of the size of the body. Pacemakers can be left in place and titanium implants can be recovered—intact and sterile.

The process's biggest draw, supporters say, is the environmental impact: The stainless steel cylinder that processes the body uses less energy to operate and produces far fewer pollutants than cremation by incineration. There's no worry that embalming fluid will further harm the earth. Neither will harmful mercury fillings, which can easily be plucked from teeth and disposed of in an environmentally safe way.

Since 2002, the world-renowned Mayo Clinic in Minnesota has used alkaline hydrolysis to dispose of about 500 bodies that had been donated for medical research. Next of kin are given the option of choosing other means of disposal, and only one family has asked for a more traditional cremation by fire, according to Terry Regnier, the clinic's director of anatomical services.

"Our bodies are largely water anyway, and it's kind of a natural process to turn us back into what we're made of," Regnier said. "The public is looking for a greener way to handle their final dispositions."

Regnier said he personally would prefer alkaline hydrolysis to fire cremation. "I wouldn't hesitate for a second," he said. "I'd have any member of my family do it, too."

Bio-cremation is legal in Minnesota, Maine, Florida, and Oregon, with Florida the early adopter stateside. The Sunshine State's first commercial bio-cremation facility in St. Petersburg has yet to become operational.

Canada has not yet legalized this water-based method of disposition, but this benign process of alkaline hydrolysis already appears to have received at least a tentative endorsement from Roman Catholic scholars. A 2008 National Catholic Bioethics Quarterly analysis argued that "like cremation, alkaline hydrolysis could qualify 'in cases of necessity' as the moral alternative to Christian burial."

Bio-cremation could become widespread once it is understood by funeral directors and their clients. If you give a consumer a choice of water versus fire, they will pick water nine times out of 10. It's perceived as a more sympathetic process than being burned. It's more dignified.

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