Pre-Excavation Utility-Locate Checklist for BC Properties

Start with the decision and the place

Write down why ground disturbance is being considered and where it may occur. Use ordinary descriptions such as the side yard beside a driveway, the route from a gate to a shed, or the area around an existing drainage feature. If the final method is not known, say that plainly rather than choosing a method in the record.

Identify the property and the person coordinating access, then describe the proposed area using fixed features that another person can recognize. A simple sketch or photograph can provide orientation, but it is not a utility plan. Note shared driveways, gates, occupied areas, strata or property-management processes, and any part of the site that could not be viewed. These notes keep the request bounded without claiming anything about what is below the surface.

Describe the proposed ground disturbance

Record the activity under consideration in neutral terms: excavation, drilling, post installation, drainage work, grading, planting, or another change to the ground. State whether powered tools are being considered, without assuming that equipment choice has been approved. Include the approximate work area and the features that define its edges; leave unknown dimensions marked as unknown.

Take wide photographs from more than one direction when a single view does not show the full context. Include buildings, driveways, fences, retaining edges, walkways, drains, visible service entrances, and access routes where relevant. Keep private documents, people, security details, and unrelated property information out of the record. Close-ups can show surface features, but they cannot establish the location or condition of an underground service.

Contact BC 1 Call before digging

BC 1 Call’s official homepage tells contractors and project planners who are getting ready to dig to find out first what is below by contacting BC 1 Call. It provides a locate-request process online or by telephone. Record that the request was made, the area and activity described, and the confirmation or reference information supplied through the official process.

BC Hydro’s underground-installation guidance also says to call or click BC One Call for information about underground utility infrastructure before digging work begins. Treat that contact as a preparation checkpoint, not as permission to start work. Keep the original request information with the project record, and avoid replacing the official response with a hand-drawn assumption about a service route.

Read the response as bounded project information

When a response arrives, check the area, activity, and property description against what is actually being considered. Preserve maps, correspondence, instructions, and any status information together. If the described area does not match the proposed work, or if a note is unclear, record the question and seek clarification from the appropriate utility owner or project contact before proceeding.

A BC 1 Call request does not, by itself, establish that every underground service is represented or that the work area is cleared. WorkSafeBC explains that BC 1 Call connects the ground-disturbance community with owners and operators that are registered members, and notes that not all utility companies are members. The record should therefore identify what remains unresolved instead of treating a request confirmation as a complete map or safety decision.

Separate locate information from worksite safety

WorkSafeBC’s OHS Guidelines Part 20, G20.79, states that before excavating or drilling with powered tools and equipment, the location of all underground utility services in the area must be accurately determined and any danger to workers from those services must be controlled. It also says that work near an underground utility must conform to the utility owner’s requirements.

That source statement is a boundary for the project record, not a ready-made safety plan. This article does not determine service locations, select controls, interpret markings, or decide whether work can begin. Keep the relevant utility-owner instructions and the responsible work parties’ unresolved questions visible. If the information does not support a clear decision, pause the planned disturbance and obtain the appropriate direction.

Build a neutral before-dig record

A useful package lets a new reader understand the proposal without relying on memory. Label files by area and direction, retain original photographs, and separate observations from statements received from others. Use ‘visible’, ‘reported’, ‘not checked’, and ‘unknown’ where those descriptions are accurate. Do not turn a surface mark, an old plan, or a neighbour’s recollection into a confirmed underground-service location.

Include the following structured notes:

• Property and proposed work area, described with recognizable fixed features.
• Ground-disturbance activity being considered, including whether powered equipment is contemplated.
• Wide photographs, close-ups, date and direction notes, and areas that could not be viewed.
• BC 1 Call request information, responses, instructions, and questions that remain open.
• Access, occupancy, shared-property, and communication requirements that affect the project record.
• A clear note of who is responsible for resolving each open question before the work discussion continues.

Ask a contractor to define scope

If a contractor is being asked to discuss the project, provide the neutral record and ask for the scope to be stated separately from the locate information. Ask which area and ground-disturbance activities are included, whether powered equipment is contemplated, which documents or utility-owner instructions they expect to review, and who will handle communications with utility owners. Ask what questions are outside their scope and should be directed elsewhere.

A scope conversation should not turn this checklist into a locate, a marking record, a clearance, or a site-specific safety decision. Keep the proposed work, the information received, the unresolved questions, and any later scope statement in separate parts of the record. That separation makes it easier for the responsible parties to identify what has been confirmed, what has not been checked, and what still requires direction.