Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 35, Number 9, 1 Kepakemapa 2018 — Eco-caskets leave a light touch on the earth [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Eco-caskets leave a light touch on the earth

j HO'OKAHUAWAĪWAI v > EC0N0MIC SELF-SUFFICIENCY f

ByTreenaShapiro When Cortney Gusick's father was diagnosed with late-stage cancer, her 'ohana felt privileged to have time to be thoughtful and deliberate in their choices for his care, and ultimately his remains.

During his finalfivemonths, Gusick's father was able to see where he would be buried and the shroud he would be wrapped in. But when it

eame time to consider what he'd be buried in, traditional caskets coated with lacquer and adorned with metal embellishments just didn't seem like the right fit. "Are those things on any other day we

should bury in our backyard?" Gusick asked. An Internet search led Gusick to a casket maker in Oregon who specialized in biodegradable, earth-friendly caskets built of plain pine. "It was a wonderful opportunity to bury my dad's body in the end with something

that will seamlessly return to the earth. That felt really good," Gusick

said. "Metal, rubber, ^ plastics, they just didn't feel consistent."

By eliminating the materials that ean leaeh or contribute to

p o 1 1 u t i o n , 'green' cas-

kets leave a light touch on the earth - even more 50 than crema-

i tion. According to Gusick, about 70 percent of the

state's population chooses cremation, whieh calls for eon-

trolled burning of 27 to 30 gallons of fuel that releases gas into the atmosphere. "Everything has a cost to it," she said. After holding the experience inside of her for years, in 2017 Gusick began prototyping biodegradable caskets, relying on YouTube tutorials and the tactile skills her father had passed on to all four of his daughters. Gusick said, "Onee I got my hands on it, I realized 'This is my path. This is what I'm designed to do, something that Fm uniquely qualified for.'" Today Gusick is owner of Pāhiki Eco-Caskets, where she spends about 30 hours a week on top of her full-time job as a test engineer for San Franciscobased User Testing. After she's done with her day job, she heads to Waimānalo Wood, the sawmill where she and her one full-time employee operate. The sawmill offers a variety of woods, depending on what arborists SEE ECO-CASKETS ON PAGE 19

Pōhiki eco-caskets ore constructed from biodegrodoble wood ond glue for a seamless return to the earth. - Photo: Courtesy Pāhiki Eco-Caskets

ECO-CASKETS Continued from page 12 bring: Norfolk pine, monkeypod, albizia, avocado and mango. "We don't have to import anything to make these so the carbon footprint is small," she noted. Eco-caskets take about 10 years to break down, roughly the same amount of time for an unembalmed body to completely cycle back. In the end, "You get to become part of the land," said Gusick. "You're adding structure and nutrients to the ground." Another advantage to green burials is cost: Pāhiki's eeocaskets cost $1,800 to $3,800. Traditional caskets, by contrast, start at around $3,000 and some are as expensive as $25,000. According to Gusick, the average price is about $7,000. Some choose Pāhiki caskets because they're environmentally-friendly, others because they're affordable, "Or maybe both, Gusick adds. "Either way, it's win-win."

About Mālama Loans Courtney Gusick put her own resources into launching Pāhiki Eco-Caskets, with help from early investors. In January, she took advantage of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs Mālama Loan program to expand to a bigger workspace, purchase industrial tools and wood, and cover labor costs. She turned to OHA Loans because the Hawaiian-serving organization is like-minded in regard to land and the environment. "It was so important for me to have loeal resources and work with people who have vested interests in the land, their resources and the environment," Gusick said. "It felt healthier to me to seek that first." More information about Pāhiki Eco-Caskets is available at www. pahikicaskets.com, or by calling (808) 542-7691. You ean also find them on social media as @ pahikicaskets. Visit www.oha.org/loans for more information about OHA Loans.B

Cortney Gusick