La. Admin. Code tit. 43 § XI-6101

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 12, December 20, 2024

Section XI-6101 - Excavation and Demolition; Prohibitions

A. Except as provided in this Section, no person shall excavate or demolish in any street, highway, public place, or servitude of any operator, or near the location of an underground pipeline, or on the premises of a customer served by an underground pipeline without having first ascertained, in the manner prescribed in Subsection B of this Section, the specific location as provided in §6301 of all underground pipelines in the area which would be affected by the proposed excavation or demolition.

B. Except as provided in §6303, prior to any excavation or demolition, each excavator or demolisher shall serve telephonic or electronic notice of the intent to excavate or demolish to the regional notification center or centers serving the area in which the proposed excavation or demolition is to take place and shall include the specific location where the excavation or demolition is to be performed. Such notice shall be given to the notification center at least 48 hours, but not more than 120 hours, excluding weekends and holidays, in advance of the commencement of any excavation or demolition activity. Holidays shall consist of the following: New Year's Day; Martin Luther King, Jr. Day; Good Friday; Memorial Day; Independence Day; Labor Day; Thanksgiving Day; Christmas Eve; and Christmas Day. The marking of an operator's pipeline shall be provided for excavation or demolition purposes only.

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2. The excavator or demolisher shall provide the specific location for excavation or demolition using white paint, flags, stakes, or similar means under American Public Works Association guidelines prior to submitting notice.

3. The excavator or demolisher shall wait at least 48 hours, beginning at 7 a.m. on the next working day, following notification, unless mutually agreed upon and documented by the excavator and operator to extend such time, before commencing any excavation or demolition activity, except in the case of an emergency as defined in the provisions of this Chapter or if informed by the regional notification center that no operators are to be notified.

4. Concerning pipelines located on or in water, when an extension of time to mark a pipeline cannot be agreed upon and the operator has determined said pipeline(s) cannot be adequately marked by the mark by time listed on the Regional Notification Center ticket, the operator may appeal to the commissioner for an extension to the mark by time. Said request shall be made via e-mail to PipelineInspectors@la.gov and the contact e-mail listed on the regional notification center ticket shall be copied on the request. The request shall contain the ticket no., location of the pipe and a summary explaining why the line cannot be located by the mark by time. The request shall be made on a form as provided by the commissioner.

C. This Chapter shall not apply to activities by operators or landowners excavating their own underground pipelines on their own property or operators' exclusive right-of-way provided there is no encroachment on the rights-of-way of any operator and the operator controls access to the location.

D. For purposes of this Section, any physical markings or electronic drawings identifying a specific location as provided for in Subsection B of this Section shall not exceed the actual area of excavation or demolition.

La. Admin. Code tit. 43, § XI-6101

Promulgated by the Department of Natural Resources, Office of Conservation, LR 46:955 (July 2020), repromulgated LR 49327 (2/1/2023), Amended LR 49908 (5/1/2023).

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with 40:1749.27.