Interprovincial pipelines (TC Energy, Enbridge, Trans Mountain and others) are federally regulated wherever they run.
m
From the owner's records or a locate. Cover changes along a line; never trust it without exposing the line.
2
The dig
Where
m
From the line's centre (the locate marks) to the nearest edge of the dig.
m
Method
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Controlled areaLicensee approvalHand expose zoneNo machinesLocate marks
3
The answer
No machine digging within 5.0 m until the pipeline is exposed
The dig is 3.0 m from the pipeline, inside the hand expose zone. Expose it by hand or hydrovac first, so you can see exactly where it is and how deep.
30 m
either side
Controlled areayour dig
30 m either side of the centreline (or to the edge of the right of way if wider). Notify Utility Safety Partners before any ground disturbance here.
Pipeline Rules s.1(4), s.45
5 m
either side
Licensee approvalyour dig
No ground disturbance in the right of way (or within 5 m where there’s no right of way) without the licensee’s approval; it answers in writing within 21 days.
Pipeline Rules s.43
5 m
either side
Hand expose zoneyour dig
Within 5 m, expose the pipeline by hand excavation (hydrovac included) until it is positively identified, with the licensee’s certified representative present, before any more mechanical excavation.
Pipeline Rules s.51(1), (3)
600 mm
either side
No machines
Once exposed, no mechanical equipment within 0.6 m of the pipe or anywhere beneath it unless the licensee’s representative directly supervises.
Pipeline Rules s.51(5)
Before the first bucket
Locate
Notify Utility Safety Partners 3 to 10 days ahead (not counting weekends and holidays) before ground disturbance in a pipeline’s controlled area or right of way. The licensee marks it within 3 days.
Locate good for
Not set in law. Keep the marks visible and ask for a new locate if they’re lost or the position is in doubt.
Consent
Ask the licensee for approval to work in the right of way; there is no charge for locates, consent or supervision.
Hydrovac
“Hand excavation” includes water or air jets and vacuum extraction, so hydrovac counts.
Ground disturbance means
Ground disturbance is any work deeper than 30 cm, or that reduces the cover (cultivation to 45 cm is exempt).
Backfill and contact
Notify the licensee at least 24 hours before backfilling an exposed pipeline.
The rules · Alberta
Horizontal drilling or boring within 5 m: expose the pipe first, then hand excavate at least 1 m deeper than it and 2 m either side of the tool path.
Contact the owner of any pipeline within 30 m of the work, have it marked, and don’t start until it is (OHS Code s.447).
Hand digging no deeper than 300 mm, and cultivation under 450 mm over a pipeline, aren’t ground disturbance under the OHS Code.
Every owner can set stricter conditions than the law: follow the locate sheet and consent where they are.
A summary to plan with. The regulation and your employer's procedures govern.
Pick what's buried and where you're digging, and this calculator shows the zones round the line in your province or territory in 3D: the controlled area, where you need consent, the hand expose zone and how close a machine may come. It tells you whether your method is allowed where you're digging, and what has to happen before the first bucket.
The zones round a buried line
Controlled or prescribed area. Usually 30 m either side of a pipeline: a locate, and often consent, before any ground disturbance.
Consent zone. The right of way, or a few metres either side: the owner's written approval, on its conditions.
Hand expose zone. No machine digging until the line is exposed by hand or hydrovac and you can see where it is and how deep.
Machine limit. Once it's exposed, machines still keep their distance unless the owner supervises.
Lines are rarely exactly where the drawings say, and cover changes along a line. The locate marks show roughly where it is; only exposing it shows exactly where.
If you hit a line
Stop digging. If gas or product is escaping, get everyone upwind and away, shut off engines and anything that could spark, and call 911 and the owner. Even a scrape or dent to a pipe or its coating must be reported to the owner before the trench is backfilled: a scratched coating can lead to a failure years later.
Sources: the Canadian Energy Regulator Act and Pipeline Damage Prevention Regulations; Alberta's Pipeline Rules and OHS Code Part 32; BC's Pipeline Crossings Regulation, Gas Safety Regulation and OHS Regulation s.20.79; Saskatchewan's Pipelines Act and OHS Regulations; the OHS regulations of the other provinces and territories; Info-Excavation's directives; Ontario One Call's Rules; the one-call centres' published timelines (sections in the rules panel). Where the law sets no distance, the 1 m drawn is the common owner practice, not law.
Frequently asked questions
What is the hand expose zone for a pipeline in Alberta?
Within 5 m of a pipeline, Alberta’s Pipeline Rules require it to be exposed by hand excavation (which includes hydrovac) before any more mechanical digging, with the licensee’s representative present. Once it is exposed, no machine may work within 0.6 m of it or beneath it without the licensee supervising. The OHS Code sets 5 m either side of the marks for a pipeline at 700 kPa or more, and 1 m for other buried facilities.
What is the controlled area around a pipeline?
In Alberta the controlled area is 30 m either side of the pipeline’s centreline, or to the edge of the right of way if that is wider; notify Utility Safety Partners 3 to 10 days ahead before ground disturbance there. For a federally regulated pipeline the prescribed area is also 30 m either side, and ground disturbance in it needs the pipeline company’s written consent.
How close can you dig to a federally regulated pipeline?
Under the Canada Energy Regulator’s damage prevention rules, no mechanical excavation within 3 m of the pipe until it is exposed by hand: at intervals when digging along it, and at the crossing when digging across it, unless the company confirms the pipe is at least 60 cm below the dig. Notify the company 24 hours before backfilling over it.
What counts as ground disturbance?
Under the federal and Alberta, BC and Saskatchewan pipeline laws, any work that disturbs the ground deeper than 30 cm, or that reduces the cover over a pipeline, is ground disturbance; cultivation to 45 cm is exempt. That includes digging, trenching, augering, drilling, ploughing, grading, fencing and driving stakes.
Keep locate tickets, consents and ground disturbance checklists together
TruStar Connect holds your ground disturbance checklists, hazard assessments and permits on every phone on site, offline, with the locate ticket attached, ready for your COR audit.
