HEPPNER, Ore. (AP) -- Roadkill: It isn't just for dinner anymore.

A new roadkill compost center near Heppner will assure that many deer, cattle and other animals killed along Eastern Oregon highways won't simply decompose in a ditch. Instead, it will become productive compost.

The Morrow County Planning Commission has approved a conditional use permit for a composting facility.

Officials say roadside carcasses are becoming a larger problem as Oregon's population grows, and that roadkill attracts scavengers such as coyotes, which bother farmers and boost the likelihood of more roadkill.