DS Excavator Manual - MA ME NH RI VT

1 Table of ContentsPreface ..2 State Regulatory is Dig Safe ?..3 Call Before You is Excavation?..5-6 Wait the Required the With After To Take If You and Perfect Dig Safe Permits Online with at a Request Coding System for Facility s ManualA Guide To Safe Excavation Practices inMassachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, rhode Island and VermontDig Safe System, s Smart. It s Easy. It s the is Dig Safe ?Dig Safe is a call center, serving as a link between you theexcavator, and member utility companies. We are a private,not-for-profit organization established to collect informationabout your upcoming excavation project and notify the appro-priate member utilities in the area of excavation.

2 The utilitiesmark the location of their lines, or use sub contracted privatelocating companies to mark their lines. This is a free servicefor anyone to : Dig Safe is a call center and does not mark lines!Hours of OperationDig Safe is open from Monday through Friday from 6:00am to 6:00pm for both regular and emergency locate off hours, weekends and holidays, Dig Safe s off hourscall center processes only emergency locate requests. Seepage 7 for a list of observed Center OperationAfter you have given all of the appropriate information to a Dig Safe Customer Service Representative (CSR), he or shewill repeat the information back to you.

3 Please listen carefullyto verify its down the list of member utilities notified for the mark-out request so you may verify their response on the job will be given an eleven digit Dig Safe confirmation number, or ticket number. Please keep this number for your , not all utilities and municipalities are required bylaw to participate in the Dig Safe system. It is your responsi-bility to notify any non-member facility owners purpose of this document is to provide you with a basicunderstanding of your responsibilities as set forth in the DigSafe law of your state concerning safe excavation practicesand the protection of underground document is not intended as a legal reference.

4 It does not contain the complete text of the Dig Safe Law, and is not intended to be a guide for dealing with specific utility companies or may download copies of this Manual at ,as well as complete copies of the state laws and rules for MA, ME, NH, RI and Regulatory AgenciesThe following state agencies regulate and enforce the Dig Safe Law. Massachusetts Department of Telecommunications & EnergyOne South Station, Boston, MA 02201617-305-3500, Maine Public Utilities Commission242 State Street - 18 State House StationAugusta, Maine 04333-0018 207-287-3831, New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission21 South Fruit St, Suite 10, Concord, NH 03301-2429603-271-2431, rhode Island Public Utilities Commission89 Jefferson Blvd, Warwick, RI 02885401-941-4500, Vermont Department of Public Service112 State St.

5 - Drawer 20, Montpelier, VT 05620-2601802-828-2811, is Excavation? Massachusetts: Excavation means an operation for the purpose of movement or removal of earth, rock or thematerials in the ground including, but not limited to, digging,blasting, auguring, backfilling, test boring, drilling, pile driving,grading, plowing in, hammering, pulling in, jacking in,trenching, tunneling and demolition of structures, excludingexcavation by tools manipulated only by human power for gardening purposes and use of blasting for quarrying purposes. (Chapter 82, Section 20)Maine: Excavation means any operation in which earth,rock or other material below the ground is moved or otherwisedisplaced, by means of power tools, power equipment orexplosives and including grading, trenching, digging, ditching,drilling, auguring, tunneling, scraping and cable or pipe driving, except tilling of soil and gardening or displacement of earth, rock or other material for agricultural purposes.

6 (Title 23, MRSA 3360-A)New Hampshire: Excavate , excavating , or excava-tion means any operation conducted on private property or ina public way, right-of-way, easement, public street, or otherpublic place, in which earth, rock, or other material in theground is moved, removed, or otherwise displaced by meansof any tools, equipment, or explosive, and includes but is notlimited to drilling, grading, boring, milling, trenching, tunneling,scraping, tree and root removal, cable or pipe plowing, fenceor sign post installation, pile driving, wrecking, razing, rendingor moving any structure or mass material but does not includethe tilling of soil for agricultural purposes, landscaping and Continued on the next Before You is the law!

7 Must call for a utility mark-out request at least 48business hours in advance in rhode Island and Vermont,and at least 72 business hours in Massachusetts, Maineand New Hampshire. (Excluding weekends and holidays.) Massachusetts and Maine, you must call regardless ofwhere the excavation is. In New Hampshire, rhode Islandand Vermont, you must call when working within 100 feetof underground utility facilities, including private must call for most earth penetrating activities, evensmall jobs. See the definition of Excavation on page t rely on old marks or faulty out the area that you plan to excavate with whitepaint, flags or stakes.

8 Include the name or initials of your state regulators inspect an excavation site or inves-tigate a damage prevention incident, they will check to seeif you have a valid Dig Safe the Locate Request Form so that you will knowwhat information you need when calling Dig Safe.(See page 18.) an emergency, notify Dig Safe at 888-DIG-SAFE with thelocation of the emergency excavation as soon as emergency is a sudden or unexpected occurrence whichposes a threat to public safety, life, health, property or essen-tial utility the Required you begin any non-emergency excavation, youmust call Dig Safe at least 48 business hours in advancein rhode Island and Vermont, and at least 72 businesshours in advance in Massachusetts, Maine and NewHampshire.

9 (Excluding weekends and holidays, see theobserved holidays list below). not start excavating before your legal start date and time! your excavation has not started within 30 days fromthe date the Dig Safe permit was obtained, the Dig Safepermit expires and must be renewed. Renewals requirethe same advance notice as new New Hampshire and rhode Island*,Dig Safe permitsexpire every 30 days from the date of issue. InMassachusetts, Maine and Vermont, if the excavation has started within 30 days from the date of issue, the Dig Safe permit is valid for the life of the excavation,provided that the Excavator maintains the work that is completely cancelled must bereported to Dig Safe.

10 * For exceptions, refer to the rhode Island Dig Safe Law, which is available at HolidaysNew Year s Day Day President s Day Patriot s Day (MA,ME only) Memorial Day Independence Day Victory Day (RI only) Labor Day Columbus Day Veteran's Day,Thanksgiving Day Day After Thanksgiving Christmas DayWhat is Excavation? - Continuedmaintenance or residential property performed with non-mechanized equipment, landscaping activities performed withmechanized equipment that are intended to cut vegetation,including lawn edging, aeration and de-thatching, excavationspermitted or grandfathered under RSA 155-E, or replacementof department-of-transportation-installed delineator posts inthe same location.