Two new developments in the morbid world of undertaking are breathing new life into the coffin trade, which has seen prices rise exponentially, with even poor families spending up to R20 000 for a casket.
The Eco-Friendly Coffin and the Every-Body DIY Coffin aim to make the business of dying not only affordable but also environmentally friendly.
In an effort to recycle the bad into good, the Working for Water programme is using wood from invasive plants to manufacture coffins. The plants pose a serious threat to bio-diversity and it is an often expensive and arduous task to eradicate them.
Daniel Okeyo, a lecturer in zoology and biodiversity at the University of Fort Hare, says the initiative is welcome as pine trees, for example, suck up huge amounts of soil nutrients and water. “They don’t survive without a lot of water. They will use up all the water and release it into atmosphere.” He is enthusiastic about the prospect of finding a commercially viable but ecologically sustainable use for these invader trees.
The Eco-Friendly Coffins project is part of a partnership between faith-based groups, Working for Water and the Departments of Water Affairs and Forestry, Correctional Services and Science and Technology.
The two-year pilot project kicked off late last year, after winning a R1million award from the World Bank. This month, the first five pine coffins were completed by unemployed people in Bergville, KwaZulu-Natal. In future, some of the coffins will be made by teams including former prison inmates in an attempt to reintegrate them into society and create jobs.
The KwaZulu-Natal provincial department of agriculture and environmental affairs has also partnered the project in an attempt to avert high funeral costs, which can cripple bereaved families. Plain chipboard coffins will start at R650 and a solid wood, basic casket will cost about R6 000.
The United Kingdom-based Alliance of Religion and Conservation, a project partner, will assist with funding and encourage people to plant indigenous trees in remembrance of family members. These trees will be planted along riverbanks that are being rehabilitated after invasive species have been cleared.
In another innovative development, a flat-pack coffin has hit our shores courtesy of Dutch industrial designer Gijs Zijlstra. The EveryBody DIY coffin is low cost and can be built by anyone, without the need for special skills or equipment. “The EveryBody Coffin comes as a package with separate components. No tools or joints are needed: the coffin slides together.”
Zijlstra came up with the idea of an easy-to-assemble coffin after being shocked by TV images of rows of bodies after the Madrid bombings in March 2004. The EveryBody Coffin has been especially designed for disaster areas, where a large number of coffins need to be produced quickly and inexpensively.
Dick Lammertink, South African representative of the project, explains that plans are under way to produce the coffins in South Africa. EveryBody is hoping to produce the coffins in a way that will create jobs and aid black economic empowerment. The EveryBody, which costs R600, comes in plain wood, and the interior and exterior can be decorated by family and friends.