Kevin, In the states there is a system called one call. You call them whenever you are doing anything with digging. They will send out a crew to mark any buried lines or pipes around where you are planning to dig. You need to have your excavation area marked out before they show up.
Technically, it is not required that you call one call when doing hand digging, but it is free and it can't hurt. I called them when I was planning on digging the footers for my deck. They didn't exactly do a great job of marking stuff, but there was nothing in my actual digging area for them to mark. You get a permit to dig for a certain period of time, but I didn't actually start digging for a long time after my permit was expired. Doubtful that anyone had snuck into my yard and buried any new pipes during that time though. Do a google search for "one call" excavation and the name of your state and you should get the number you need to call. -- Blue skies. Dan Rossi Carnegie Mellon University. E-Mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Tel: (412) 268-9081
