Following the foot-and-mouth disease epidemic in Great Britain in 2001, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources asked researchers at Iowa State University to evaluate the potential effectiveness (rate and extent of decay), environmental impacts (air, soil, and water quality), and biosecurity (containment and inactivation of viral pathogens) of using on-farm composting for emergency disposal of beef or dairy cattle carcasses in the event of a disease outbreak in the State of Iowa.