It has been reported that the California General Assembly unanimously passed a bill supporters said would allow bio-cremation to serve as a human remains disposal choice.

The Sacramento Bee reported on Thursday that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has not expressed an opinion on the bill.

Assemblyman Jeff Miller, the bill's sponsor, said, "This is going to be a whole new industry that's going to really help California, and help families that want choices in their end-of-life options."

The Bee further reported that Miller's measure would allow mortuaries to dissolve dead bodies in an environmentally friendly way through alkaline hydrolysis, a process involving a combination of water pressure, heat and alkalinity, which is more familiarly known as bio-cremation.

It was further reported by the newspaper that bio-cremation would probably cost a few hundred dollars more than incineration, but thousands less than a conventional funeral service and burial. The process results in a non-harmful sterile liquid that can be disposed of at a water treatment plant.

Chris Miller, owner of Thomas Miller Mortuary, said, "There's no smoke, no emission, no carbon footprint, nothing left to destroy the Earth."

Jessica Koth of the National Funeral Directors Association also said that bio-cremation is legal in Minnesota, Maine, Florida, and Oregon. (With inputs from Agencies)