Aboveground disposal: which requirement is correct?

• A. The carcass must be placed at least 1,000 feet from any neighboring resident.
• B. The carcass may be placed within 20 feet of another carcass.
• C. The owner of the land need not authorize placement.
• D. The carcass may contact groundwater.

Answer: (A)

The main point here is the safety setback for aboveground carcass disposal to protect people and the environment. Requiring a distance of at least 1,000 feet from any neighboring resident creates a wide buffer that reduces odors, deters scavengers, and lowers the chance of exposure for nearby households. That distance is the strongest, most protective rule among the options.

Placing a carcass within 20 feet of another carcass would undermine those protections by concentrating waste and attracting pests, so that instruction isn’t correct. Landowner authorization is necessary to place carcasses on someone else’s property, so saying authorization isn’t needed is false. And allowing the carcass to contact groundwater would risk leaching pathogens or contaminants; disposal should prevent groundwater contact, so that option is not acceptable either.