Where Can I Scatter Cremated Remains?

Video Transcript

Where you can scatter cremated remains varies greatly by state. I would ask that you contact your local funeral provider and your local authority to see what the rules and regulations are in that state or county. Your local funeral provider can also supply you with a list of different companies that scatter cremated remains as part of their business or their whole business. They know the rules and the regulations whether you're scattering by air, by sea, or by land, and they can really help to ensure that your celebration of life is done with dignity and respect. If one chooses to scatter their loved one's cremated remains on private property, I would just ask that you think about whether that property always be your property.

Answers from Other Funeral Directors Around the United States:

It is legal to scatter on your own property or public property, but you could get fined for littering if the scattering is done inappropriately. As for bodies of water, it needs to be a certain distance from shore. I always tell families to be mindful of the location and other people around them.

- Abby Schilling

Funeral Director in Richfield, MN

This is a gray area. Cremation is considered final disposition in the state of Florida. There is no one that regulates the scattering of cremated remains. However, for a water scattering it is a federal law that the cremated remains are taken at least 3 miles off shore.

- Jessica Watts

Funeral Director in Jacksonville, FL

It depends. Each state has different requirements and restrictions. In Texas definitely do NOT scatter in ponds, streams, rivers, lakes, tributaries, or waterways. Be sure to travel 3 nautical miles out onto the ocean for water scatterings.

- C. A. Bankston

Funeral Director in Fort Worth, TX

You may scatter on any private property with consent of the owner, any uninhabited land, and at sea, at least 3 nautical miles from shore.

- Michael Sollitto

Funeral Director in Charlotte, NC