Green burials are natural, but they also can have a high-tech element.

Hippensteel Funeral Service and Crematory uses the Global Positioning System to precisely locate bodies at The Preserve, a 1.5-acre natural burial site at Spring Vale Cemetery in Lafayette.

Joe Canaday of Hippensteel said each person who has a green burial at The Preserve receives a GPS transmitter disk in the center of the casket or in the grave if there is no casket. People who are cremated also receive a GPS transmitter.

"We make sure the locator can read the disk," he said. "It's like reading a bar code."

"All the information is in our computer database just like all funerals. Should anybody require disinterment, we have to be able to find the grave."

The GPS locator can read up to 5 feet deep, said Richard Robles, caretaker at Spring Vale Cemetery. He has been trained to use the GPS equipment for The Preserve.

"Right now, the graves are easy to find because they are fresh," he said. "I haven't had to use it yet."

He said The Preserve also has a GPS locator at each of its four corners to mark the boundaries.