Page 8 - West Virgina 811 Magazine 2021 Issue 3

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relays it to the affected member underground facility owners/operators. Each facility owner/operator is responsible for ensuring that its facilities are properly marked. Privately installed lines by property owners are their responsibility and may not be marked by our members.
Section 3
Responsibilities of The Facility Owner/Operator (After Receiving the Locate Request)
In West Virginia, underground facility operators must belong to the One Call System except for:
• Privately owned public water utilities regulated by the Public Service Commission
• State Agencies
• Municipalities or Counties
• Municipal or County Agencies
• Underground pipeline facilities not under the jurisdiction of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
Owner/operators of these exempt facilities may be voluntary members.
Each member must provide the One Call System with its name, address and telephone number and the location of its underground facilities. Any changes to this information must be revised not more than180 days after the change.
Upon receiving notification of a locate request for excavation or demolition work from the One Call System, members must mark the facilities in the work area within 48 hours, excluding Saturday, Sundays and legal holidays. The members shall mark their facilities within two feet horizontally from the outside walls of such facilities using
the color code stated in Section 24C-1- 6 (standard color code for temporary markings). The type of facility must also be given.
It is recommended that the following symbols be used:
E Electric Power TC Traffic Control ST Steam
W Water
TE Telephone
CH Chemical
TV Cable TV
PP Petroleum Products
G Gas
SS Storm Sewer
FA Fire Alarm
HZ Hazardous Pipelines
S Sewer
Any members who have no underground facilities at the work area must notify the party requesting the locate of this. This notification will be made by the one call center to a contact point provided by the party when the locate request was made.
Underground facility owners/operators who fail to comply with the provisions of the law may not prevent excavation or demolition work from proceeding. This failure to comply shall bar the facility owner/operator form recovering any cost of damage resulting from
such failure, except damage caused by the willful or intentional act of the excavator. Recovery for damages resulting from underground facility owners responding to a notification and unable to accurately locate their facilities electronically, shall be determined by common law.
Liability for damages occurring to underground facilities owned by an operator who is not required to be a member, and who is not a member of the One Call System at the time of damage, shall be determined solely by common law and cannot use the provisions of Chapter 24-C.
Section 4
Responsibilities of The Excavator (After Making the Call)
Notifying MUWV and providing required information is only the first step in the locating process. There are several other responsibilities which need to be considered to comply with state and federal laws.
When possible, use white markings to designate a proposed excavation site. It is recommended that survey markings be made using tile color pink. Following these guidelines helps to prevent confusion at work sites. Identifying markings of underground facilities
at work sites must be protected and preserved.
Excavators must instruct all equipment operators involved with the intended work to perform in a manner which will avoid damage to underground facilities, including hand digging when necessary. Proper clearance must be maintained between the cutting edge or point of any powered equipment and underground facilities.
Underground facilities exposed during excavation or demolition work must be adequately supported at the work site and during backfilling operations for the protection of the facilities.
Any damage, leak or break caused
or discovered by an excavator at the work site must be reported to MUWV within 24 hrs. If the damage results
in an emergency situation, the public must also be alerted, and you must immediately report any damage caused or found that creates an emergency
to the appropriate medical, law- enforcement and fire prevention authorities (calling 911, if available, meets the requirement).
Upon such damage being discovered or caused, excavation or demolition work in the immediate area shall be discontinued until the facility operator has reasonable time to accomplish repairs.
If proper notification has been given and the excavation start date and time has arrived as reported, the excavator may proceed with caution. When one underground facility owner/operator indicates there are no facilities in conflict with a specific excavation, the excavator must realize that this does not mean that MUWV has cleared the site; nor does it mean that other facilities are not present at that location. Excavators are reminded not to begin excavation until all underground facilities have been marked, including those that might be operated by facility owners/ operators not having membership in MUWV, and therefore, not notified of the excavation by MUWV.
MUWV must also be notified, as soon
as reasonably practical of excavations necessary to address an emergency. An emergency is defined as any condition which endangers life, health or property as specified in Chapter 24-C. These notifications are given top priority
and, upon receipt of such notification, member underground facility owner/ operators of MUWV will mark their facilities at the site as soon as practical. Extreme care must be taken to avoid
6 • West Virginia 811
2021, Issue 3