Tiverton could soon be home to a corpse incinerator on 730 Main Road, adjacent to four densely populated streets, a primary care facility, daycare and multiple bus stops. Some may balk at my word choice here, but word choice is part of what got us here.

Tiverton's Planning Board told the dozens of concerned citizens that showed up on February 7th that their hands are tied due to Tiverton’s outdated zoning ordinances. The land is zoned for General Commercial use and a “crematorium” is an accepted use in Tiverton. “Incinerators” are not allowed and are listed on our town’s ordinance under “Prohibited Uses”. Incinerator and crematory are synonymous. The only reason this will be allowed is due to semantics. As a result, Tiverton could be home to an incinerator that could release odors, plumes of noxious smoke, and dangerous levels of chemical toxins including mercury and other toxic airborne particulates to our residents.

There are no federal rules or regulations on emissions from crematories. The EPA intended to regulate the funeral industry, but they were lobbied to be removed from the solid-waste incinerators category and have not been placed in another to be regulated. Also, the data on crematory emissions is old. EPA standards today are based on data collected in 1999 on emissions from only ONE crematory, a study that was referred to by the proposed owners.

If potential emissions were not enough, there’s also the issue of parking and increases in traffic. One citizen that spoke at the February 7th meeting was a Brown University professor and a former funeral director. He explained that the owner of the proposed crematorium also owns a funeral home in Fall River, whose clientele includes a large population of people that practice Buddhism. His experience has shown this population is pro-cremation. They hold a service at the crematory chapel with key family members, but also have a large procession of 100+ cars escorting the family to the facility.

I hold no ill will against anyone’s religious practices or how they mourn their dead. This simply comes down to what makes sense for the proposed site. The crematory will allot 10 parking spaces. Main Road in Tiverton is a state road that doesn’t allow road-side parking. When the Planning Board was asked about this we were told, “as to parking and traffic issues, you can address that with the police department.”

So potential toxic emissions, odors, smoke, parking issues, all because of semantics. Word choice is important, which is why I’ll close with some words from our town’s zoning ordinance. “The zoning regulations and districts herein set forth have been made to achieve the following purposes: Promoting the public health, safety and general welfare.” Our town should adhere to these words above all others.

Please join me at Town Hall on March 7th at 6:30 to have your voice heard. You can also find our group “Tiverton Residents Against Crematorium” on Facebook or donate to our legal fund at https://gofund.me/db625b39

Ryan LePage

Tiverton