DANDRIDGE, Tenn. (AP) — Jefferson County zoning officials have temporarily halted an effort by Carson-Newman College to create a body farm.

The Knoxville News Sentinel (http://bit.ly/TtEhgT ) reported the Board of Zoning Appeals set over to its December meeting a proposal to allow studies on how decomposing bodies affect the environment.

The most famous cadaver research center is the University of Tennessee body farm in nearby Knoxville. But retired Knoxville Police Department forensic specialist Art Bohanan says neither the UT facility nor three others in the country study the effects of bodies on soil, air and water. Bohanan plans to donate a hilltop surrounded by his property for a new study center in Jefferson County.

County planner Dave Williams said he doubts many regulations address the issue.