Burials at Sea Rise as China's Land Graves Run Dry

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Some Chinese cities are offering cash incentives to encourage sea burials, due to a shortage of space and a rapidly aging population.

Image: Lin Hui Zhen, 76 years, weeps as she clutches the small bag carrying the ashes of her late husband Fu Yao Ming, 80 years, before placing them in a metal chute during a sea burial

SHANGHAI, CHINA - MARCH 23: Lin Hui Zhen, 76 years, weeps as she clutches the small bag carrying the ashes of her late husband Fu Yao Ming, 80 years, before placing them in a metal chute during a sea burial organized by the Funeral and Internment Administration of Shanghai on March 23, 2014 on a ferry in the East China Sea off Shanghai, China. Shanghai is among a number of cities in China promoting sea burials through cash incentive in an attempt to offset a shortage of land for cemeteries due to a rapidly ageing population. The city has carried out thousands over the years, and although a departure from local custom the practice is slowly gaining popularity as a real alternative to the traditional ways. (Photo by Kevin Frayer/Getty Images)Kevin Frayer / Getty Images

March 25, 2014, 10:47 AM EDT / Updated March 25, 2014, 11:18 AM EDT

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