WASHINGTON — Virginia residents have had their share of run-ins with deer, literally.

In fact, Virginia ranks in the top five nationally when it comes to cars and deer colliding.  In 2010 and 2011, the state recorded more than 48,700 deer-vehicle crashes, the fifth-highest number in the nation.

Now Virginia is getting on board with other states like Maryland in the way it deals with road kill, by turning deer carcasses into compost.

The Virginia Department of Transportation will use that compost, which is fertilizer, on roadside vegetation in the state.

VDOT spends more than $4 million removing deer carcasses from the road each year — either taking them to landfills or burying them road-side.

Several of the VDOT composting facilities in Virginia use forced air. The carcasses are layered with sawdust and the forced air creates a heated environment where microbes break down the carcasses.  The high temperatures reached in the composting facilities cause pathogens to die.

More of these composting facilities are planned in the future with the average cost for the facility being around $140,000 each. The state figures it will recoup the cost for the facilities in about five years.

There are currently facilities in the Lynchburg and Staunton areas as well as Hampton Roads and Richmond.

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