Consumer Protection BC — the authority that administers the Cremation, Interment and Funeral Services Act — states it plainly: there are no laws in British Columbia preventing green burial, and embalming is in most cases not a legal requirement. Green cemeteries are treated no differently from any other place of interment.
That clarity is useful, but it cuts both ways. Because green burial is not separately defined in BC law, nothing stops a cemetery from calling a section "green" without meeting any particular standard. What actually governs your options is the individual cemetery's operating bylaws — and those you have to ask about directly.
This guide covers what BC law requires, what it costs here compared with the rest of the country, where green burial is genuinely available, and how to arrange one.
What counts as a green burial
A true green burial returns a body to the earth without embalming, without a vault, in a shroud or a simple biodegradable container. If a cemetery requires a concrete liner, or won't accept an unembalmed body, or won't take a shroud, it isn't offering green burial regardless of what the brochure says. For the full standard, see what a true green burial actually involves.
What BC law actually requires
Embalming is not required
Consumer Protection BC is explicit that in most cases embalming is not a legal requirement. A funeral home may recommend it depending on timing, but it is not a condition of burial.
You can supply your own container
BC law permits families to provide their own casket or container for burial, provided it meets certain specifications — a point the Memorial Society of BC sets out in its guidance on consumer rights. This matters directly for shroud burial, which is what most dedicated green sections are designed around.
Cemetery bylaws are where the real rules live
Consumer Protection BC notes that for an operator to designate an area as "green," they must amend their operating bylaws. That is the practical key to this whole subject in BC: the province sets a permissive framework, and each cemetery writes its own rules within it. Two cemeteries an hour apart can have entirely different requirements on containers, markers, and depth.
So the question to ask is never "is green burial allowed in BC" — it is — but "what does this specific section's bylaw permit?"
What it costs, and how BC compares
Every cemetery with a care fund in British Columbia must deposit a minimum share of each plot sale into that fund, held in trust for the cemetery's long-term upkeep. Under the Cremation, Interment and Funeral Services Regulation, that minimum is at least 25 per cent of the selling price of the right of interment. The regulation lists some specific operators at different rates in its Schedule 1, and columbarium and mausoleum niches sit lower at 10 per cent — so confirm the figure with the cemetery rather than assuming.
For comparison, Ontario mandates 40 per cent on every plot sold, green burial included — a difference that has become a live political argument in that province. If you have been reading about the cost of natural burial in Canada and encountered the 40 per cent figure, that is Ontario's rule, not BC's. Our breakdown of Ontario's maintenance fee covers why it exists and why it's contested.
The practical effect is that BC families generally pay a smaller mandatory surcharge on the plot than Ontario families do. Beyond the care fund, pricing is not regulated — but BC funeral providers must make their full price list available on site or on their website, so you are entitled to see the complete cost before committing.
Where green burial is available in British Columbia
BC's sites are genuinely established rather than newly announced, which is unusual in Canada. The province is home to Canada's first conservation burial ground, and several of its natural cemeteries have been operating for well over a decade.
Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands
- Royal Oak Burial Park — The Woodlands (Victoria) — one of Canada's most established natural burial areas, expanding in phases. Direct earth burial, no vaults, biodegradable containers only.
- Salt Spring Island Natural Cemetery (Salt Spring Island) — a community-managed cemetery on protected Douglas fir forest.
- Denman Island Natural Burial Cemetery (Denman Island) — Canada's first exclusively green cemetery, with a no-vault, no-embalming policy throughout. Note that eligibility is restricted: burial is limited to past or present Denman Island residents and landowners, and their immediate families.
- Nature Grove at Yates Memorial Services (Parksville) — a dedicated green burial garden on central Vancouver Island.
- Cumberland Cemetery (Comox Valley) — hybrid green burial within a municipal cemetery.
Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley
- Mountain View Cemetery (Vancouver) — the city's only cemetery, offering green burial within an urban setting.
- Heritage Gardens Cemetery — Green Burial Garden (Surrey) — a family-owned hybrid cemetery with a dedicated green section.
- Heritage Woods Natural Burial (Chilliwack) — hybrid green burial in the eastern Fraser Valley.
Every site listed above accepts direct earth burial in a shroud or simple biodegradable container with no vault required. Browse the full national directory for details, or compare with the situation in Ontario.
One thing BC doesn't allow
If you are weighing alternatives, it is worth knowing that British Columbia currently permits only conventional burial and flame cremation. Alkaline hydrolysis — also called aquamation or water cremation — and natural organic reduction, or human composting, are not available in the province, and Consumer Protection BC has reminded providers of that restriction. A volunteer group has been lobbying to have the Act updated.
This puts BC behind several other provinces on disposition choice. Ontario, by contrast, legalised aquamation in 2015 — see what aquamation actually involves.
It also sharpens the case for green burial here. More than 80 per cent of British Columbians choose cremation, against a national rate of just over 75 per cent, and with the alternatives unavailable, natural burial is the meaningful lower-impact option on the table. Whether it genuinely beats cremation environmentally is a more complicated question than it first appears: green burial vs. cremation, honestly compared.
How to arrange a green burial in BC
1. Choose a site
Distance is the real constraint — BC's sites cluster on Vancouver Island and in the Lower Mainland, and the Interior and North have very limited options.
2. Ask the cemetery for its bylaw specifics
Containers accepted? Shroud permitted, and is a lowering board required or provided? Markers? Depth? These are bylaw questions, and they vary site to site.
3. Confirm the care fund percentage in writing
At least 25 per cent is the general minimum, but ask for the actual figure and the full price breakdown before committing.
4. Work with a funeral provider who has done this before
Without embalming, timing matters — burial generally needs to happen within days, or the body held in refrigeration. You can check any provider's licence through Consumer Protection BC's online search.
5. Decide on shroud or simple container
You are permitted to supply your own, subject to specifications. The fuller cross-Canada walkthrough is here: how to plan a green burial in Canada.
Common questions
Is green burial legal in British Columbia?
Yes. Consumer Protection BC states there are no laws preventing it, and green cemeteries are treated the same as any other place of interment under the Cremation, Interment and Funeral Services Act.
Is embalming required in BC?
No. In most cases it is not a legal requirement.
Can I be buried in a shroud in BC?
Yes, at cemeteries whose bylaws permit it. BC law allows you to supply your own container subject to specifications, and every site listed above accepts shroud burial.
Does BC charge the 40 per cent cemetery fee I've read about?
No — that is Ontario's rule. BC's regulated minimum care fund contribution is at least 25 per cent, with some variation by operator.
Can I have an aquamation or human composting in BC?
Not currently. The province permits only conventional burial and flame cremation.
Where is green burial available in BC?
Principally on Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands, and in the Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley. See the list above.
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