DIGGING SAFELY
Stay Safe While Drain Tiling
By Dan Maschka, Public Awareness Manager, Northern Natural Gas Company
If you come from an arid part of the
country, you may not be familiar with
the term “drain tiling.” Lately however,
you may have heard the term used
occasionally on the national news and
wonder what it is all about. Simply put,
drain tiling is a very specific type of
excavation process commonly used to
improve drainage of existing farm ground
or to help add additional farm land that
would otherwise not be used for farming
because the ground is too wet during a
portion of the year. Even though you may
not come from a part of the country that
uses drain tiling techniques, safe digging
methods practiced while drain tiling
can be applied to all types of excavation
projects.
How does
drain tiling work?
Here is a brief overview of the
drain tile process. Drain tile is perforated flexible plastic pipe designed
to accelerate water drainage of wet
farm ground. The plastic pipe is
manufactured in large spools that vary
in length and diameter. A common
method of installation requires the
spool to be attached to a trencher that
automatically lowers the pipe to a
predetermined depth as the machine
THE AERIAL PATROL PLANE DISPLAYS THE 811 MESSAGE
moves along digging the trench.
Once the trench is backfilled, water
percolates down through the soil or
through other gathering points. The
water is directed into the plastic pipe
where it drains away from the field and
typically empties into a stream. The size
of the project can range from a single
trench that drains a specific problem
area to dozens of connected trenches
that drain entire fields.
Often drain tile installation projects
are conducted by drain tile professionals
accustomed to using the One Call
system before they begin digging.
However, a recent trend indicates
that some folks are buying their own
drain tile installation equipment and
doing the work themselves. These new
entrepreneurs may not be accustomed
to calling the One Call system during
the planning stages of their drain tile
project. The fact that the equipment
can quickly be mobilized in and out of
a job site creates a unique challenge of
anticipating where these projects will
take place, so educating the new diggers
to call 811 before they dig can be a
difficult task.
Safety from the sky
One pipeline company turned to
aerial patrol surveillance to better
observe excavation activity. The airplane
was fitted with special decals on the
underside of the wings displaying the
811 logo and the Call 811 Before You
Dig message. The area to be patrolled
was narrowed down by using data that
identified where drain tile installation
activities were most likely to occur along
the company’s pipeline system. This area
was surveyed twice a week during the
spring of 2012. During that time frame,
379 excavation activities were identified.
Each excavation activity was investigated
Aerial photograph of the April 25, 2012,
pipeline incident near Hinton, Iowa
by a pipeline company employee. The
investigations revealed 15 One Call
violations. Each violation was reported
to the appropriate state attorney general
seeking enforcement action.
Tragedy strikes quickly
A poignant reminder of the dangers
of not calling the One Call center before
starting all digging projects occurred
April 25, 2012. A drain tile project was
underway near Hinton, Iowa, when a
drain tile installer struck and ruptured a
high-pressure natural gas transmission
pipeline. The escaping natural gas
ignited. Miraculously, the two drain tile
employees escaped with minor injuries.
So please remember, contacting your
state One Call center is now easier than
ever before. Simply call 811 anywhere in
the nation to be connected to the state’s
One Call center. More information can
be found at www.call811.com.
DIGGING DEEPER!
About the Author
Dan Maschka just celebrated 35 years
with Northern Natural Gas Company in
Omaha, Nebraska. He is a member of
numerous One Call boards, pipeline
associations and current co-chair for
the national Common Ground Alliance
public education committee.
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Know what’s below. Call before you dig.