Page 14 - MS811 2022 issue 4

HDD Brings
Challenges in
Damage
Prevention
A By Michael Downes 811 Magazines
s more utilities and contractors embrace trenchless technologies for installing new underground
facilities, the risk of deadly cross
bore incidents grows. Utilities and organizations like the Common Ground Alliance (CGA) are spreading the word of caution to stakeholders, including a group not commonly associated with damage prevention — plumbers.
A cross bore incident occurs when
a new facility is accidentally pulled through an existing buried line — most commonly sewer pipes — rather than
crossing over or under the existing line. While every effort is made to locate all underground facilities, some parts of the sewer network are not mapped and take some extra effort on the part of field crews to avoid striking them.
Lance Andrews, director of operations for Atmos Energy in Dallas, Texas, spoke about the challenges of avoiding cross boring incidents during a recent presentation.
“Everyone in the industry wants to know what’s underground,” Lance said during a recent telephone interview.
“We do things like calling 811 to get accurate locates, and “potholing” the facilities to ensure that we don’t damage them.
“What causes special challenges with sewer lines is that most laterals to
the sewer main are owned by the residential or commercial customer. Municipalities don’t locate the portion of the system between the house and the property line. Those present a more significant challenge than other utilities,” he said.
With the advent of horizontal directional drilling, pneumatic piercing
12 • Mississippi 811 2022, Issue 4