Scattering of Cremated Remains in BC

Cremation Services

Cremation is a process that prepares human remains for final disposition. Through the application of intense heat and flame human remains, and the container they are in, are reduced to skeletal fragments and container ash. Commonly referred to as the ‘ashes’, these skeletal remains are further processed for enclosure into an urn selected or provided by the survivors of the deceased. Following cremation the survivors must make a decision regarding the final disposition of the cremated remains.

Scattering Cremated Remains

There are no laws in BC that prohibit scattering but it is prudent to consider the consequences of disposing of cremated remains in this manner. Scattering of cremated remains is permanent and irreversible. Scattering performed outside of a registered, licensed cemetery can deny a family, and it’s future generations, of a permanent memorial site where the life lived can be remembered, honored and celebrated. For that reason the some cemeteries have created a number of scattering options.

Garden of Remembrance with a Memorial Wall

Some cemeteries have created a Garden of Remembrance with a Memorial Wall. The garden allows for scattering of the cremated remains and the wall allows for a bronze memorial plaque with simple inscription to indicate that the ashes of the deceased one are scattered here.

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SCATTERING OF CREMATED REMAINS IN ALBERTA

There are no legal requirements to bury cremated remains

following cremation, but there may be some restrictions on where

cremated remains can be scattered. Scattering of remains is usually

permitted on Crown and publicly owned lands. Permission must

be obtained ahead of time in all cases.

There are some restrictions on scattering of cremated remains in

national parks (such as Banff or Jasper), provincial parks, forests and

wilderness areas (such as Kananaskis). There may also be municipal

restrictions. Please ask your funeral director for further information.

Scattering of cremated remains is permanent and cannot be

reversed. Several important issues to consider before scattering are:

• There is no permanent place to identify with the deceased

and if done on private property, it may be sold in the future.

• There may be restrictions at parks, lakes, and such places

and they may not be accessible in the future. There is also

no guarantee that the location will be in the same condition

in the future.

• There is also no way to place a marker to identify the burial

place for future generations.

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Is it legal to scatter remains in Manitoba?

Manitoba law does not prohibit the scattering of human ashes. The Litter Regulation under The Environment Act of the province and the Anti-Litter By-law of the City of Winnipeg prohibit the distribution of “ashes”, but the definition of “ashes” in both laws does not include human ashes.

Prohibitions under federal law: the definition of “waste” in the Canada Water Act and of “deleterious substance” in the Fisheries Act is so broad that it must include cremains – and therefore scattering is prohibited in waters under federal jurisdiction.
Of course, scattering ashes on any property should be done only with the permission of the owner of the property – whether it is private property or public property.

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Scattering of Cremains(ashes) in the UK.

Good news – the law on scattering ashes in the UK is fairly relaxed you can even scatter or bury them in your garden if you wish.

There is nothing explicit in the legislation to restrict people in disposing of the cremated funeral ashes.

While the regulations may be on your side, the difficultly may come getting permission to scatter or bury the ashes on someone else’s land.

You should have the land owners permission. And certain places are off limits.

Just one piece of advice – you are more likely to get permission and less likely to get disturbed if you chose somewhere in the countryside or wilderness. Local Authorities often don’t like people scattering ashes in public parks and gardens especially in urban areas, because parks are relatively small and a lot of people use them. Also if you wish to conduct a ceremony it is likely that you will not get the privacy or space to make it a special event.

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