{"id":14080,"date":"2020-08-11T16:04:50","date_gmt":"2020-08-11T20:04:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.paawwa.org\/?p=14080"},"modified":"2020-08-11T16:04:50","modified_gmt":"2020-08-11T20:04:50","slug":"puc-recognizes-national-811-day-damage-prevention-efforts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dev.linnflux.tech\/paawwa\/puc-recognizes-national-811-day-damage-prevention-efforts\/","title":{"rendered":"PUC Recognizes National 811 Day & Damage Prevention Efforts"},"content":{"rendered":"

PUC Recognizes National 811 Day & Damage Prevention Efforts<\/strong><\/p>\n

August 11, 2020<\/strong><\/p>\n

Calling 8-1-1 Before Starting Any Digging Project is an Essential Safety Step for Contractors and Those Working Around the Home<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

HARRISBURG \u2013 On this 11th<\/sup> day of August, or 8\/11, the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) recognizes \u201cNational 811 Day,\u201d and reminds all residents, contractors and utilities of the importance of calling 8-1-1 before digging to help ensure the safety of excavation projects across the state.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur Damage Prevention Committee (DPC) has been doing an excellent job emphasizing the role of the Pennsylvania One Call System (PA One Call),\u201d said Commissioner John F. Coleman Jr. during the PUC\u2019s Public Meeting on Aug. 6. \u201cEven with the Coronavirus pandemic and the slowdown of some construction projects, there have been more than 555,000 PA One Call tickets to locate underground utility lines so far this year.\u201d<\/p>\n

More excavators and homeowners understand the importance of 8-1-1 thanks to increased public awareness and education.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Digging Safety<\/strong><\/p>\n

Every time an underground utility line is hit, there is a risk to the contractors or homeowners who are doing the digging; to utility workers and emergency responders who are mobilized to deal with the damage; and to bystanders who live, work or travel near the locations of the incidents.<\/p>\n

During the first half of 2020, a total of 2,617 line hits were reported to PA One Call, compared to 2,785 for the same period last year \u2013 a reduction of about 6 percent (168 hits), despite a near-record number of line-location calls.<\/p>\n

Even with a near-record number of underground line location requests, the number of reported \u201chits\u201d continues to drop \u2013 helping to make everyone safer.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

PA One Call Law<\/strong><\/p>\n

State law requires contractors and residents to contact\u00a0PA One Call<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0at least three business days prior to excavation \u2013 triggering alerts to all utilities within an intended digging area and prompting utilities to mark where their facilities are located. Pennsylvanians can dial 8-1-1 to connect with the One Call system, while out-of-state residents or businesses can call 1-800-242-1776.<\/p>\n

When the PUC first took on the role of enforcing the state\u2019s One Call Law, underground lines across the state were struck more than 6,000 times per year \u2013 but the situation continues to steadily improve, thanks to education, public awareness and enforcement.<\/p>\n

About the DPC<\/strong><\/p>\n

The August meeting of the Damage Prevention Committee (DPC) is fittingly being held on 8-1-1 Day \u2013 featuring a brief history of PA One Call and underscoring the \u201c4 C\u2019s\u201d of damage prevention \u2013 cooperation, collaboration, coordination and communication.<\/p>\n

The DPC is a peer-based group of 13 representatives, nominated by their industry or affiliated organization and appointed by the PUC. Creation of the committee was authorized by\u00a0Act 50 of 2017<\/strong><\/a>, which enhances Pennsylvania\u2019s Underground Utility Line Protection Act \u2013 also known as the \u201cOne Call Law.\u201d\u00a0The focus of the DPC\u00a0is to reduce the number of \u201chits\u201d on underground lines and utilities.<\/p>\n

The DPC meets regularly to review alleged violations of Act 50 and make informal determinations as to the appropriate response including, but not limited to, the issuance of warning letters, mandatory training programs and\/or administrative penalties. Summaries of actions<\/strong><\/a> taken at monthly DPC meetings are available on the PUC\u2019s website.<\/p>\n

About the PUC<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission balances the needs of consumers and utilities; ensures safe and reliable utility service at reasonable rates; protects the public interest; educates consumers to make independent and informed utility choices; furthers economic development; and fosters new technologies and competitive markets in an environmentally sound manner.<\/p>\n

For recent news releases and video of select Commission proceedings or more information about the PUC, visit our website at\u00a0www.puc.pa.gov<\/strong><\/a>. Follow the PUC on Twitter \u2013 @PA_PUC for all things utility.\u00a0 \u201cLike\u201d Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission on Facebook for easy access to information on utility issues.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Contact:<\/strong><\/td>\nDenise McCracken<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nSenior Communications Specialist<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n717-787-5722<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\ndemccracken@pa.gov<\/strong><\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

PUC Recognizes National 811 Day & Damage Prevention Efforts August 11, 2020 Calling 8-1-1 Before Starting Any Digging Project is an Essential Safety Step for Contractors and Those Working Around the Home HARRISBURG \u2013 On this 11th day of August, or 8\/11, the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) recognizes \u201cNational 811 Day,\u201d and reminds all […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[6,14,7,5,11,10],"tags":[],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.linnflux.tech\/paawwa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14080"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.linnflux.tech\/paawwa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.linnflux.tech\/paawwa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.linnflux.tech\/paawwa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.linnflux.tech\/paawwa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14080"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dev.linnflux.tech\/paawwa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14080\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14081,"href":"https:\/\/dev.linnflux.tech\/paawwa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14080\/revisions\/14081"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.linnflux.tech\/paawwa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14080"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.linnflux.tech\/paawwa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14080"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.linnflux.tech\/paawwa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14080"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}