Minnesota
On April 7th, 2017, Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton signed a safe digging proclamation to help focus public attention on this issue. Mike Mendiola with the Minnesota Office of Pipeline Safety (MNOPS), a professional in the underground damage prevention industry, arranged the signing. The proclamation encourages everyone to contact Gopher State One Call (GSOC) at least 48 hours, excluding weekends and holidays, before any excavation project to prevent damage to underground utilities, injuries, and the disruption of essential services.
In recognition of NSDM, GSOC partnered with the Minnesota Regional Common Ground Alliance (MNCGA) and the Minnesota Office of Pipeline Safety (MNOPS) to host 32 damage prevention meetings around the state that emphasized the need to practice safe digging, which starts with a “call or click” to GSOC. In addition, GSOC offered ITIC training webinars every Wednesday in April to help train excavators on the online ticketing tool that is available to them.
Read more to see what our damage prevention partners across the country did to celebrate NSDM in their respective states.