EXCAVATION PROCEDURES

A.Pre-excavation. Before excavating, an excavator shall determine whether all underground facilities have been marked.#

(1)If all underground facilities have been marked or cleared through a positive response system and the advance notice marking period has expired, the excavator may begin excavating.#

(2)If one or more underground facilities have not been marked and positive response has not been provided, an excavator shall, prior to commencing excavation, call the one-call notification system for verification that advance notice was transmitted to the UFO and to provide notice that the underground facilities have not been located or cleared via a warning locate request. UFOs shall promptly respond to warning locate requests ideally within two hours.#

B.Excavation.#

(1)If, while excavating, an excavator observes evidence that an unmarked underground facility may exist, the excavator shall, before excavating in the immediate area of such evidence:#

(a)make a reasonable effort to identify and contact the UFO and wait until the UFO marks or clears the immediate area of the evidence; the UFO shall mark or clear the area within two hours of contact or as expeditiously as possible if the excavation site is in a rural area;#

(b)expose the underground facility by non-mechanical means or mechanical vacuum excavation methods.#

(2)If excavation activity encroaches within 18 inches either side of a marking made by a UFO, an excavator shall, prior to excavating, expose the underground facility by non-mechanical means or mechanical vacuum excavation methods.#

(3)If the exact subsurface location of the underground facility or utility cannot be determined by non-mechanical means or mechanical vacuum excavation methods as required in Subparagraph (a) of Paragraph (1) and (2) of Subsection B of 18.60.5.15 NMAC, the excavator shall contact the UFO directly and UFO shall work with the excavator to locate and expose the actual subsurface location of the underground facility or utility. If the UFO must resort to performing excavation to locate the facility, the UFO shall perform such excavation within five working days of notice from the excavator. If requested, the local one-call notification center shall provide the excavator with the contact telephone number of the UFO.#

(4)If excavation activity cannot proceed without obliterating all or some of the markings made by a UFO, an excavator shall provide temporary offset marks or stakes to retain the information regarding the location of each UFO's underground facilities.#

(5)The requirement to provide positive response for a facility does not apply to the homeowner of a residential property.#

(6)The commission encourages excavators to notify the UFO when excavation activity will be within twenty-five feet of the actual utility marking provided or as agreed upon by a right of way encroachment agreement or permit for infrastructure identified by the UFO as critical (i.e., transmission and trunk line pipelines, fiber optic, power, 911, etc.).#

C.Temporary suspension of excavation activity. If staff determines that an excavation activity is not in compliance with the requirements of this rule, and that continued noncompliance may result in injury to persons or damage to property, staff may suspend the excavation activity until the excavation activity is brought into compliance with the requirements of this rule and excavation conditions are safe.#

History[18.60.5.15 NMAC - Rp, 18.60.5.15 NMAC, 1/15/2019; A, 8/9/2022]#