In observance of National Safe Digging Month in April, Columbia Gas has released findings from a recent national survey involving 1,000 U.S. homeowners. The survey revealed that over half (51 percent) plan to undertake an outdoor do-it-yourself digging project within the next year, yet 56 percent do not intend to notify 811 beforehand, thereby posing risks to themselves and their communities.
Each year, thousands of buried utilities are damaged due to digging activities. National Safe Digging Month aims to remind homeowners and contractors that digging without knowing the approximate location of underground utilities can lead to serious injuries, service disruptions, and costly repairs when natural gas, electric, communications, water, and sewer lines are affected.
Submitting a free locate request online at ohio811.org or by calling 811 at least two full business days before digging can help maintain essential utility services while ensuring community safety by reducing the likelihood of accidentally hitting buried lines.
“It takes just a few minutes to submit a locate request by phone or online,” said Columbia Gas of Ohio President & COO Robert Heidorn. “Those few minutes can make a big difference when it comes to safety. There’s just no reason to take a chance on hitting a utility line that could result in injuries, service disruptions, repair costs and fines.”
After contacting 811, professional locators will mark the approximate locations of underground lines with flags or spray paint. Each color represents a unique type of underground utility. The flags may be removed once the project is fully complete. For more information or to see the complete color code guide visit ColumbiaGasOhio.com/811.
Columbia Gas encourages those planning any outdoor digging projects such as installing mailboxes or planting trees to follow these steps for safety.
About Columbia Gas of Ohio
Columbia Gas of Ohio delivers natural gas to approximately 1.5 million customers across the state from its headquarters in Columbus. It is the largest natural gas utility in Ohio and one of six regulated utility companies under NiSource (NYSE: NI). NiSource aims for net zero greenhouse gas emissions from its operations by 2040.
About CGA
CGA is an association comprising nearly 4,200 damage prevention professionals across various sectors of the underground utility industry. Established in 2000, CGA promotes effective damage prevention practices with an aim to save lives and prevent damage to North American underground infrastructure.
About the study
The online survey was conducted among 1,000 U.S. homeowners aged 21+ between March 5-7, 2024 by Censuswide on behalf of CGA with a margin of error based on a 95% confidence level at +/-3%.
