Ohio Utilities Protection Service

8-1-1-logo (BMP)

Welcome to the Ohio Utilities Protection Service



Call 8-1-1 or 1-800-362-2764 before you dig: It’s the law!



By law, everyone — including homeowners — MUST contact the Ohio Utilities Protection Service, 8-1-1 or 1-800-362-2764, at least 48 hours but no more than 10 working days (excluding weekends and legal holidays) or enter it online with e-dig Ticket Entry the easy online dig request for homeowners, before beginning ANY digging on their property. Think your project's too small? It's best to call!

Remember, safe digging means calling 8-1-1 or 1-800-362-2764 or 8-1-1 before ANY type of landscape or excavation work. Lines have been hit digging, such things as, fence post holes, anchoring supports for decks and swing sets, planting trees, removing tree roots and driving landscaping stakes into the ground. By not calling, you're not only breaking the law, but also risking injury to yourself, your family or work crew and the surrounding community.

A vital resource for Ohio residents and businesses alike, the Ohio Utilities Protection Service acts as a communication link between utility companies and individuals planning any digging activity. This site includes all the information you need to dig safely and protect your community.

Homeowners, contractors and excavators can call either number at anytime to request a locate. If you dial 8-1-1, your call will be forwarded to an existing one-call notification center and will notify our members who own and operate underground facilities in the area in which you plan to dig.
Positive response (JPG)
Visiting the Positive Response website, you can check out the status of your request if you have a ticket number. The Greene County Sanitary Engineering Department only marks the portion of their lines which they own and maintain. So laterals on private property not in an easement and water services after the curb stop (usually the meter pit) are not marked by the Greene County Sanitary Engineering Department.
 

Wait for the marks! Utilities will mark their buried lines on your dig site.



Most locate crews will arrive to mark your dig site with paint or flags within a few days and will make sure you know where to avoid digging so you don't hit buried utilities. Remember the depths of utility lines may vary and there may be multiple utility lines in the same area. Be sure to check your state laws for specific information.

Digging Safely



You called before digging, waited for your lines to be marked, and now it's time to roll up your sleeves and get to work! Make sure to always dig carefully around the marks, not on them. Some utility lines may be buried at a shallow depth, and an unintended shovel thrust can bring you right back to square one - facing potentially dangerous and/or costly consequences. Don't forget that erosion or root structure growth may shift the locations of your utility lines, so remember to call again each time you are planning a digging job. Safe digging is no accident!


ORC Sec. 3781.28. (A) Except as otherwise provided in divisions (C), (D), (E), and (F) of this section, at least forty-eight hours but not more than ten working days before commencing excavation, the excavator shall notify a protection service of the location of the excavation site and the date on which excavation is planned to commence.

*Please note that the Ohio Revised Code defines excavator as “the person or persons responsible for making the actual excavation” (ORC Sec. 3781.25 (K)). Therefore, while O.U.P.S. will not refuse a ticket from any caller, we advise the actual excavator place the call to O.U.P.S., receive their own ticket number and wait the required 48 hours in order to be compliant with Ohio law.*