Ground disturbance & locates
Before digging or hydrovac daylighting in Alberta, request locates through Utility Safety Partners (formerly Alberta One-Call; online via Click Before You Dig). Around energy pipelines, the AER's Pipeline Act (sections 32, 35, 42) and Pipeline Rules (Part 4, Ground Disturbance) set out search, notification, consent and hand-exposure requirements. OHS Code Part 32 covers excavation safety.
Who it applies to: Anyone planning a ground disturbance: excavators, hydrovac operators, contractors, landowners. Pipeline Act rules apply around AER-regulated pipelines.
“A pipeline's controlled area is a strip of land 30 m wide on each side of the pipeline, measured from the centre of the outermost pipeline. If the ROW extends beyond 30 m from the centre of the outermost pipeline, the entire ROW is the controlled area.”
Quoted from AER, Working Around Oil and Gas Pipelines, checked Oct 2026
Official sources (checked Oct 2026)
- Utility Safety Partners
- Submit a locate request (Utility Safety Partners)
- Click Before You Dig
- AER: Working around oil and gas pipelines
- AER: Safe Excavation Near Pipelines (PDF)
- Pipeline Act (Open Government)
- Pipeline Rules (Open Government)
- OHS Code Part 32: Excavating and tunnelling
Ground disturbance training (e.g. GD 201) is set by industry standards and employer/owner requirements; confirm which level your client requires.
Related tickets: Ground Disturbance 201, Ground Disturbance 101 · see jobs asking for them
On CrewKit: CompanyCam · Enverus LifeSaver · Ground disturbance checklist prompt · Spoil volume calculator