{"id":16467,"date":"2021-08-11T10:20:19","date_gmt":"2021-08-11T14:20:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.paawwa.org\/?p=16467"},"modified":"2021-08-12T05:22:06","modified_gmt":"2021-08-12T09:22:06","slug":"puc-recognizes-national-811-day-damage-prevention-efforts-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dev.linnflux.tech\/paawwa\/puc-recognizes-national-811-day-damage-prevention-efforts-2\/","title":{"rendered":"PUC Recognizes National 811 Day & Damage Prevention Efforts"},"content":{"rendered":"

PUC Recognizes National 811 Day & Damage Prevention Efforts<\/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 The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) today encouraged every Pennsylvanian to consider the importance of safe digging on this 11th day of August, or 8\/11 \u2013 which is \u201cNational 811 Day.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cResidents, contractors, businesses and utilities all play a role in helping to ensure the safety of excavation projects,\u201d noted PUC Commissioner John F. Coleman Jr. \u201cThat begins with ensuring that the Pennsylvania One Call system is contacted before any digging so underground utilities can be located and marked before work begins.\u201d<\/p>\n

Calling 8-1-1 before any excavation project is a key step in safeguarding workers and the public, as well as helping to prevent damage to essential underground utilities.<\/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 2021, a total of 3,259 incident reports were received by PA One Call, compared to 3,445 for the same period last year \u2013 a decrease of about 6%, or 186 reports.<\/p>\n

Every reduction in the number of \u201chits\u201d on underground utility lines helps to make our community safer.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

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

State law requires contractors and residents to contact\u00a0PA One Call<\/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

The Damage Prevention Committee<\/strong><\/p>\n

The PUC\u2019s Damage Prevention Committee (DPC) works to enforce the state\u2019s\u00a0One Call Law<\/a>, with a focus on education and public awareness, along with the investigation of violations.<\/p>\n

The DPC is a peer-based group, nominated by their industry or affiliated organization and appointed by the PUC. Creation of the committee was authorized by Act 50 of 2017, which enhances Pennsylvania\u2019s Underground Utility Line Protection Act \u2013 also known as the \u201cOne Call Law.\u201d<\/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.\u00a0Summaries of actions<\/a>\u00a0taken 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

Visit the PUC\u2019s website at\u00a0www.puc.pa.gov<\/a>\u00a0for recent news releases and video of select proceedings. You can also follow us on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and YouTube. Search for the \u201cPennsylvania Public Utility Commission\u201d or \u201cPA PUC\u201d on your favorite social media channel for updates on utility issues and other helpful consumer information.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

PUC Recognizes National 811 Day & Damage Prevention Efforts Calling 8-1-1 Before Starting Any Digging Project is an Essential Safety Step for Contractors and Those Working Around the Home HARRISBURG \u2013 The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) today encouraged every Pennsylvanian to consider the importance of safe digging on this 11th day of August, or […]<\/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\/16467"}],"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=16467"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dev.linnflux.tech\/paawwa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16467\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16468,"href":"https:\/\/dev.linnflux.tech\/paawwa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16467\/revisions\/16468"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.linnflux.tech\/paawwa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16467"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.linnflux.tech\/paawwa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16467"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.linnflux.tech\/paawwa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16467"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}