Excavation and trenching - Tennessee

Tennessee operates an OSHA-approved State Plan covering most private sector workers and all state and local government workers. Tennessee OSHA (TOSHA) is part of the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development which is headed by the Commissioner. Tennesse follows the federal OSHA laws governing excavations.

Underground utilities

Tennessee has an Underground Utility Damage Prevention Act (Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 65-31-101 through 65-31-120) that requires excavators to notify owners and operators of underground utilities through a one-call notification service prior to excavation. The operator of the underground utility then marks the utilities in the area of the excavation to prevent damage, service interruption, and injury to excavation workers.

Exercise of reasonable care in excavation

General rules. An excavator must exercise reasonable care to avoid damage caused by an excavation or demolition within the safety zone. In the exercise of reasonable care, an excavator actions must include, but are not limited to:

• Planning excavation or demolition to avoid damage to and minimize interference with underground utilities in and near the excavation area;
• Maintaining a clearance between the underground utility and the cutting edge or point of any mechanized equipment, taking into account the known limit of control of such cutting edge or point, as may be reasonably necessary to avoid damage to such utility;
• Providing such support and protection for underground utilities in and near the construction area, including during backfill operations, as may be reasonably necessary for the protection of such utilities; and
• Installing each utility, regardless of the use or material, with sufficient clearance to permit the maintenance of existing utilities and to protect against damage to existing utilities.

Trenchless excavation. In performing trenchless excavation or boring, reasonable care must include, but is not limited to:

• Visually inspecting the planned excavation path for structures indicating the presence of underground utilities;
• When possible, contacting utility company directly and review maps or drawings to verify underground utility locations;
• Reviewing surface markings and compare to other information to identify any unmarked or mis-marked utility;
• Hand digging test holes or "pothole" and use other safety precautions to identify the location and depth of utilities in the drill path; and
• Drilling at a pace that is slow enough to permit tracking device(s) to detect drill line deflections or large obstructions.

Best practices. The Tennessee Underground Utility Damage Enforcement Board adopts the best practices for excavation as stated in Common Ground Alliance, Best Practices: The Definitive Guide for Underground Safety and Damage Prevention, Ch. 5, Excavation, and Appx. D (Ver. 17.0, March 2020), as may be amended from time to time, and incorporates such standards verbatim. However, if the Common Ground Alliance Best Practices are read in conjunction with Tennessee law and United States law, and there is a conflict, the state or federal law will serve as the controlling authority.