UTILITIES DIG POLICY & PERMIT PROCESS

DRAFT - Please refer to KY811 Regulations and contact UEM directly for verification of most up-to-date policy. 

Section 1: PURPOSE

Any trenching, excavation, or digging operation in an area with buried pipes, cables, or other utilities poses a potential hazard to safety and property, as much of the University’s utilities distribution system is underground. The purpose of the Utilities Dig Policy & Permit Process is to prevent injury to any contractors, University employees, students, or community members, avoid damage to University and non-University utilities and property, and to ensure uninterrupted utility service to our customers because of any digging operation. This policy is in alignment with Kentucky Revised Statutes (KRS) 349.4901-4917, the “Underground Facility Damage Prevention Act of 1994” and should be referred to for additional information (kentucky811.org, 1-800-752-6007, or Dial 811).

Section 2: POLICY

A Utilities & Energy Management (UEM) Dig Permit must be applied for anytime the ground is penetrated, irrespective of the breadth or depth of the penetration, on the University of Kentucky campus in Lexington, KY. Whenever this document refers to the words “dig” or “excavate”, this references any form of ground penetration, including but not limited to the varieties of digging or excavating listed in Section 7.

The person, contractor, agency or organization that will be performing the trenching, excavation, drilling, staking, or digging activity is responsible for requesting and obtaining permission to perform that activity from UEM through the University of Kentucky Dig Permit Application at minimum 3 to 5 working days prior to planned excavation. UK’s automated system shall create a Permit Request that will be routed to UEM, UK Grounds, UK Networking and Infrastructure, and the UK IS Locate Team for review and approval. The Permit shall not be completed until UEM review has been completed, and a corresponding Kentucky 811 Locate Request has been received and acted upon by the University entities.

UEM is responsible for providing oversight to the Information Services (IS) Locate Team, who is responsible for final approval and issuance of UK Dig Permit requests, and for retaining records of permit issuance on behalf of UEM. All UK entities shall review and approve the Dig Permit application prior to the proposed excavation date unless the applicant has been contacted with concerns about the excavation.

UK Dig Permits must be available for inspection at the work site for the duration of the proposed work. If the work extends beyond the permit expiration date, beyond 21 days of the original locate, the utility locate markings are no longer visible, or the scope of the work plan changes from original filing, the permit holder must re-submit an application or contact the IS Locate Team office to request re-mark two working days in advance of expiration.

If the permit-holding excavator discovers lines or utilities that are not marked or represented where expected, the excavator shall immediately cease excavation and contact the IS Locate Team and the UEM Delta Center. When excavation or demolition is necessary within the immediate location of the marked underground utility (within 18 inches), the excavator shall hand-dig or use nonintrusive means to avoid damage to underground utilities.

Applicants shall also be required to abide by UK Tree Protection Standards and UK Outage Processes, if applicable, as well as UK General and Special Conditions.

The University of Kentucky is mandated to comply with a state-issued general permit to discharge stormwater. Formally entitled a Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) Permit and issued by authority from the US EPA through the Kentucky Division of Water, it establishes conditions whereby the University can discharge stormwater runoff into the waters of the Commonwealth.

The University's stormwater system is comprised of detention basins, open drainage ditches and miles of underground piping. In addition, this system is also comprised of outfalls that discharge stormwater from the campus' property boundary and into streams or directly into the city of Lexington's stormwater system.

In order to meet the MS4 requirements, all construction on campus must have Best Management Practices (BMPs) designed and in place on all projects to prevent any soil, liquid, or debris from leaving the site and entering the storm system.

Anytime excavation takes place on campus, BMPs must be utilized to ensure a discharge to the storm sewer does not occur. The following documents provide information on proper best management practices as well as specific UK requirements; “Kentucky Best Management Practices for Construction Activites”, “Kentucky Erosion Prevention and Sediment Control Field Guide”.

Applicants will be responsible for ensuring that erosion and sediment control measures are selected, installed, and maintained properly.

Section 3: EXEMPTIONS

Per KRS 367.4915, a Dig Permit or KY811 Request shall not be required for dedicated seasonal landscaping beds (4” deep or less), residential-grade tent pegs or staking (6” and shorter), or wire frame yard signs. In-kind replacement of sidewalks with absolutely no deviation from existing breadth, depth, or length shall also be exempt from the Dig Permit requirement. Routine tent staking or similar activities undertaken by UK departments may be exempted from the permit process with written permission from the Director of UEM within agreed upon boundaries. Refer to Section 8 for any pre-approved activity exemptions.

Section 4: UTILITY LOCATE PROCEDURE 

In accordance with KRS 349.4901-4917, the “Underground Facility Damage Prevention Act of 1994”, an excavator must request a Utility Locate through the Kentucky 811 System via phone (811, or 1-800-752,6007) or online (kentucky811.org) at minimum 48 working hours prior to any planned digging processes. If the proposed dig falls within the University of Kentucky boundaries, Kentucky811 shall assign a locate ticket to the University, which shall be paired with any existing Dig Permit Application.

If a permit request is found valid, a representative of Information Services (IS) Locate Team will mark the University controlled utilities, including chilled water, steam, steam condensate, low-voltage electricity, UK-owned domestic water, storm sewer, and sanitary sewer per the guidelines from KY811 listed in Figure 1. The UK High Voltage Team will mark high voltage utilities. UK Grounds shall mark in accordance with the Tree Protection Standard. UK Networking & Infrastructure shall be responsible for marking underground communications lines.

Utilities within a 30-foot radius of the intended dig site shall be marked. For complex and/or unclear situations, the IS Locate Team will consult with UEM Engineers or other appropriate stakeholders before marking utilities and issuing permit. Markings may consist of stakes, flags, chalk, or paint.

While the IS Locate Team may mark portions of externally owned vendor utilities (i.e. Columbia Gas owned natural gas lines, Kentucky American owned water lines), the vendor will be responsible for officially marking those utilities as part of the KY811 request. Upon completion of marking the proposed excavation site, UK entities shall issue internal approval of the Dig Permit, which will be routed to IS Locate Team for approval.

The IS Locate Team Representative will record photos of the completed locate, and digitally sign and date the Dig Permit, thereby indicating that the applicant has been made aware of all underground utilities known to exist in the vicinity of the proposed work. The applicant will then be notified that the marking has been completed and the permit is available for print or pickup.

An excavator may commence work before the required 48 hours for locating have elapsed if a UK Dig Permit has been received, and all other affected operators associated with the Kentucky 811 ticket have notified the excavator that the utilities have been marked, or operators have verified that they have no utilities in the excavation area.

At any point during excavation, the IS Locate Team and/or UEM may visit the sites to ensure compliance. The IS Locate Team shall also take advantage of open ditches to further document coordinates, depth, and quality of underground utilities.

Kentucky 811 has additional tools to aid in the locate process as the design phase of a project is underway.  The link below leads to the design ticket information on how to get access to the additional design tools from the Kentucky 811 webiste.

https://kentucky811.org/pros/design-tickets/

Section 5: LIABILITY

Contractors doing business with the University of Kentucky are bound to follow this Dig Permit policy, per Special Conditions. Departments within the University of Kentucky shall also be required to follow this policy for any digging activities, unless engaging in activities specifically exempted in Section 2. Damage to utilities, trees, or other University property resulting from a failure to abide by this policy shall be the financial responsibility of the excavator.

Furthermore, failure to comply with Kentucky 811 regulations shall be subject to fines and penalties as enforced by the Public Service Commission.

Section 6: EMERGENCY EXCAVATION

When notification is made to Kentucky 811 of the need for an emergency locate request, an emergency ticket will be routed to the IS Locate Team, and Kentucky 811 will contact UEM via phone. UEM and/or IS Locate Team shall respond as quickly as possible, not exceeding 48 hours after receiving notification, and shall also notify other potentially impacted UK entities. UEM, Grounds, and Network & Infrastructure representatives shall inform the excavator of the approximate location and description of any of the University’s utilities that may be damaged or pose a safety concern because of excavation. Every reasonable precaution to protect the public safety, utilities, and University property shall be taken during the course of an emergency excavation.

Section 7: BOUNDARIES

Section 8: DEFINITIONS

Excavation - The removal or penetration of earth to a predetermined depth, width, and length. This includes any activity that results in the movement, placement, probing, boring, or removal of earth, rock, or other material in or on the ground by the use of any tools or equipment, by the discharge of explosives, or by the harvesting of timber using mechanized equipment. Forms of excavating include but are not limited to auguring, backfilling, boring, digging, ditching, drilling, driving, grading, piling, pulling-in, ripping, scraping, trenching, and tunneling. May be used synonymously in this document with “dig” or “digging”.

Excavator – Any entity or individual engaged in excavation or demolition using mechanized equipment.

Operator – Any entity or individual owning or operating underground utilities.

Staking – Driven insertion of a metal, wood, or plastic support with the intent of stabilizing or supporting a structure, such as a tent or tree. Per KRS 367.4903, driving wooden stakes by hand tools to a depth of six inches or less below existing grade shall not constitute excavation.