§ 1518*2 — Natural organic reduction facility operations

* § 1518. Natural organic reduction facility operations.\n Cemetery corporations that operate a natural organic reduction\nfacility shall have the following duties and obligations:\n (a) Maintenance and privacy. (1) A natural organic reduction facility\nshall be maintained in a clean, orderly, and sanitary manner, with\nadequate ventilation and shall have a temporary storage area available\nto store the remains of deceased human beings pending disposition by\nnatural organic reduction, the interior of which shall not be accessible\nto the general public.\n (2) Entrances and windows of the facility shall be maintained at all\ntimes to secure privacy, including (i) doors shall be tightly closed and\nrigid; (ii) windows shall be covered; and (iii) entrances shall be\nlocked and secured when not actively attended by authorized facility\npersonnel.\n (b) Natural organic reduction process. (1) The natural organic\nreduction process shall be conducted in privacy. No person except\nauthorized persons shall be admitted into the reduction area, holding\nfacility, or the temporary storage facility while the remains of\ndeceased human beings are being naturally organically reduced.\nAuthorized persons, on admittance, shall comply with all rules of the\ncemetery corporation and not infringe upon the privacy of the remains of\ndeceased human beings.\n (2) The following are authorized persons: (i) licensed, registered\nfuneral directors, registered residents, and enrolled students of\nmortuary science; (ii) officers and trustees of the cemetery\ncorporation; (iii) authorized employees or their authorized agents of\nthe cemetery corporation; (iv) public officers acting in the discharge\nof their duties; (v) authorized instructors of funeral directing\nschools; (vi) licensed physicians or nurses; and (vii) members of the\nimmediate family of the deceased and their authorized agents and\ndesignated representatives.\n (c) Identification of deceased human beings. (1) No natural organic\nreduction facility shall naturally organically reduce the remains of any\ndeceased human being without the accompanying natural organic reduction\npermit, required pursuant to section forty-one hundred forty-five of the\npublic health law which permit shall constitute presumptive evidence of\nthe identity of the said remains. In addition, all natural organic\nreduction facilities situated outside the city of New York, must comply\nwith paragraph (b) of subdivision two of section forty-one hundred\nforty-five of the public health law pertaining to the receipt for the\ndeceased human being. From the time of such delivery to the natural\norganic reduction facility, until the time the natural organic reduction\nfacility distributes the remains as directed, the facility shall be\nresponsible for the remains of the deceased human being. Further, a\nnatural organic reduction authorization form shall accompany the permit\nrequired in section forty-one hundred forty-five of the public health\nlaw. This form, provided or approved by the facility, shall be signed by\nthe next of kin or authorizing agent attesting to the permission for the\nnatural organic reduction of the deceased, and disclosing to the natural\norganic reduction facility that such body does not contain a battery,\nbattery pack, power cell, radioactive implant, or radioactive device, if\nany, and that these materials were removed prior to the natural organic\nreduction process.\n (2) Upon good cause being shown rebutting the presumption of the\nidentity of such remains, the natural organic reduction shall not\ncommence until reasonable confirmation of the identity of the deceased\nhuman being is made. This proof may be in the form of, but not limited\nto, a signed affidavit from a licensed physician, a member of the family\nof the deceased human being, the authorizing agent or a court order from\nthe state supreme court within the county of the cemetery corporation.\nSuch proof shall be provided by the authorizing agent.\n (3) The facility shall have a written plan to assure that the\nidentification established by the natural organic reduction permit\naccompanies the remains of the deceased human being through the natural\norganic reduction process and until the identity of the deceased is\naccurately and legibly inscribed on the container in which the remains\nare placed.\n (d) Opening of a container holding the remains of the deceased human\nbeing. (1) The remains of a deceased human being shall be delivered to\nthe natural organic reduction facility in an alternative container or in\nexternal wrappings sufficient to contain the remains and also designed\nto fully decompose in the natural reduction process. Such alternative\ncontainer or external wrappings holding the remains of the deceased\nhuman being shall not be opened after delivery to the natural organic\nreduction facility unless there exists good cause to confirm the\nidentity of the deceased, or to assure that no material is enclosed\nwhich might cause injury to employees or damage to natural organic\nreduction facility property, or upon reasonable demand by members of the\nimmediate family or the authorized agent.\n (2) In such instances in which alternative container or wrappings are\nopened after delivery to the natural organic reduction facility, such\naction shall only be conducted by the licensed funeral director or\nregistered resident delivering the remains of the deceased human being\nand a record shall be made, which shall include the reason for such\naction, the signature of the person authorizing the opening thereof, and\nthe names of the person opening the container or wrappings and the\nwitness thereto, which shall be retained in the permanent file of the\nnatural organic reduction facility. The opening of the container or\nwrapping shall be conducted in the presence of the witness and shall\ncomply with all rules and regulations intended to protect the health and\nsafety of natural organic reduction facility personnel.\n (e) Ceremonial casket natural organic reduction disclosure. In those\ninstances in which the remains of deceased human beings are to be\ndelivered to a natural organic reduction facility in a casket or other\ncontainer that is not to be naturally organically reduced with the\ndeceased, timely disclosure thereof must be made by the person making\nthe funeral arrangements to the natural organic reduction facility that\nprior to natural organic reduction the remains of the deceased human\nbeing shall be transferred to a container or in external wrappings\nsufficient to contain the remains and also designed to fully decompose\nin the natural reduction process. Such signed acknowledgement of the\nauthorizing person, that the timely disclosure has been made, shall be\nretained by the natural organic reduction facility in its permanent\nrecords.\n (f) Transferring remains. (1) The remains of a deceased human being\nshall not be removed from the casket, alternative container, or external\nwrappings in which it is delivered to the natural organic reduction\nfacility unless explicit, signed authorization is provided by the person\nmaking funeral arrangements or by a public officer discharging their\nstatutory duty, which signed authorization shall be retained by the\nnatural organic reduction facility in its permanent records.\n (2) When the remains of a deceased human being are to be transferred\nto an alternative container, the transfer shall be conducted in privacy\nwith dignity and respect and by the licensed funeral director or\nregistered resident who delivered those remains. The transferring\noperation shall comply with all rules and regulations intended to\nprotect the health and safety of facility personnel.\n (g) Commingling human remains. The natural organic reduction of\nremains of more than one deceased human being in a reduction container\nat any one time is unlawful, except upon the explicit, signed\nauthorization provided by the persons making funeral arrangements and\nthe signed approval of the natural organic reduction facility, which\nshall be retained by the natural organic reduction facility in its\npermanent records.\n (h) Processing of remains. (1) Upon the completion of the natural\norganic reduction of the remains of a deceased human being, the interior\nof the natural organic reduction container shall be thoroughly swept or\notherwise cleaned so as to render the natural organic reduction\ncontainer reasonably free of all matter. The contents thereof shall be\nplaced into an individual container and not commingled with other\nremains. The natural organic reduction permit shall be attached to the\nindividual container preparatory to final processing.\n (2) A magnet and sieve, or other appropriate method of separation, may\nbe used to divide the remains from unrecognizable incidental or foreign\nmaterial.\n (3) The incidental and foreign material of the natural organic\nreduction process shall be disposed of in a safe manner in compliance\nwith all sanitary rules and regulations as byproducts.\n (4) The remains shall be pulverized until no single fragment is\nrecognizable as skeletal tissue.\n (5) The pulverized remains shall be transferred to a container or to\nmultiple containers, if so requested in writing by the person making the\nfuneral arrangements for the natural organic reduction. Such container\nor containers shall have inside dimensions of suitable size to contain\nthe remains of the person who was naturally organically reduced.\n (6) The prescribed container or containers shall be accurately and\nlegibly labeled with the identification of the human being whose remains\nare contained therein, in a manner acceptable to the division of\ncemeteries.\n (i) Disposition of remains. The authorizing agent shall be responsible\nfor the final disposition of the remains. Disposition of remains\nresulting from the natural organic reduction process are not recoverable\nonce scattered or interred. Remains shall be disposed of by scattering\nthem in a designated scattering garden or area in a cemetery, or by\nprior authorization by the cemetery corporation, by placing them in a\ngrave, crypt, or niche, or retrieval of the remains pursuant to prior\nauthorization by the authorizing agent or a person specifically\ndesignated by the authorizing agent. Upon completion of the natural\norganic reduction process, the cemetery corporation shall notify the\nauthorizing agent and funeral firm making such arrangements that the\nnatural organic reduction process has been completed and that the\nremains are prepared to be disposed of in accordance with this\nparagraph. Upon receipt of the remains, the individual receiving them\nmay transport them in any manner in the state without a permit, and may\ndispose of them in accordance with this section. After disposition, the\ncemetery corporation shall be discharged from any legal obligation or\nliability to deliver the remains to the authorizing agent or any other\nperson enumerated under paragraph (a) of subdivision two of section\nforty-two hundred one of the public health law concerning the remains.\nIf, after a period of one hundred twenty days from the date of the\nnatural organic reduction, the authorizing agent has not instructed the\ncemetery corporation to arrange for the final disposition of the remains\nor claimed the remains, the cemetery corporation may dispose of the\nremains in any manner permitted by this section. The cemetery\ncorporation, however, shall keep a permanent record identifying the site\nof final disposition. The authorizing agent shall be responsible for\nreimbursing the cemetery corporation for all reasonable expenses\nincurred in disposing of the remains. Upon disposing of the remains, the\ncemetery corporation shall be discharged from any legal obligation or\nliability to deliver the remains to the authorizing agent or any other\nperson enumerated under paragraph (a) of subdivision two of section\nforty-two hundred one of the public health law concerning the remains.\nExcept with the express written permission of the authorizing agent, no\nperson shall place remains of more than one person in the same temporary\ncontainer or urn.\n (j) Natural organic reduction facility operation certification. Any\nemployee of a natural organic reduction facility whose function is to\nconduct the daily operations of the cremation or natural organic\nreduction process shall be certified by an organization approved by the\ndivision of cemeteries. Proof of such certification shall be posted in\nthe natural organic reduction facility and available for inspection at\nany time. Any new employees of a natural organic reduction facility\nrequired to be certified under this section shall be certified within\none year of their employment. Any employees of a natural organic\nreduction facility required to be certified under this section and\nretained prior to the effective date of this paragraph shall be\ncertified within one year of such effective date. Renewal of such\ncertification shall be completed every five years from the date of\ncertification.\n (k) The cemetery board, in consultation with the department of health,\nthe department of environmental conservation, and any other state agency\ndeemed necessary, may promulgate rules and regulations consistent with\nlaw to effectuate the provisions of this section.\n * NB There are 2 § 1518's\n