The scheme, about to be launched in Melbourne, Australia, is being offered as a simple, natural and economical approach to burial. The Melbourne company, Upright Burials, will place a corpse in a biodegradable bag and then lower the body feet first into a cylindrical hole about 30 inches in diameter and nine-and-a-half feet deep. Upright Burials claims the scheme is a world first and that the method will produce far less carbon dioxide than a regular burial. Tony Dupleix, managing director, said: "When people have a traditional burial there is the process of manufacturing a coffin, which is often made out of wood or a man-made fibre, and there is regularly a plastic tray inside the coffin too. The company hopes to bury between 30,000 and 40,000 people in a field two hours west of Melbourne. Read more at www.telegraph.co.uk