KAOHSIUNG (TVBS News) — Taiwan's southern port city of Kaohsiung has significantly broadened its communal sea burial initiative, providing families with a cost-free, environmentally conscious alternative to traditional interment practices. Municipal officials reported Friday (April 11) that 76 deceased individuals have been memorialized through the ocean burial program since 2024, reflecting growing acceptance of this sustainable approach to honoring the departed in Taiwan's second-largest metropolitan area.
The program eliminates financial barriers by covering essential services including cremation and transportation costs, according to municipal documents. Officials from the Civil Affairs Bureau recently conducted this year's inaugural ceremony, where nine deceased residents were committed to the waters with family members in attendance. The proceedings commenced with a commemorative musical performance, during which Huang Chung-chung (黃中中), who oversees Kaohsiung's Mortuary Services Office, conveyed the municipal government's sympathies to bereaved families. This ceremonial approach embodies what local authorities describe as their commitment to providing "natural, eco-friendly, and dignified" final arrangements.
Following the commemorative service, participating families were transported to Kaohsiung Port (高雄港), one of Asia's major shipping hubs, where they embarked on a designated vessel for the ash-dispersal ritual. The carefully choreographed ceremony unfolded in an atmosphere of tranquil reverence as cremated remains, enclosed in environmentally safe decomposable containers, were committed to the ocean waters alongside scattered flower petals — a symbolic gesture representing the completion of life's journey and its reintegration with the natural world.
The Civil Affairs Bureau's director, Yan Qing-zhi (閻青智), underscored the municipal government's broader commitment to advancing alternative interment practices, including both maritime and arboreal memorial options. Yan expressed aspirations that the communal ocean burial initiative would foster greater public awareness and receptiveness toward environmentally responsible end-of-life arrangements. This progressive approach, he suggested, could guide Taiwanese society toward embracing more sustainable and compassionate funerary traditions that honor both the deceased and the natural environment. ★