Definitions

As used in sections 16-345-1 to 16-345-9, inclusive, of the regulations of Connecticut state agencies: (1) "Excavator" means a person, partnership, corporation or association, including a public utility or a person engaged as a contractor by a public utility or public agency, directly performing or engaged in the act of excavation, demolition or discharge of explosives; (2) "Public agency" means the state or any political subdivision thereof, including any governmental agency; (3) "Public utility" means the owner or operator of underground facilities for furnishing electric distribution or transmission services, gas, telephone, telegraph, communications and pipeline (whether for hire or not), sewage (including storm sewers, sanitary sewers and drainage systems, or parts thereof), water, community television antenna, steam, traffic signal, fire signal or similar service, including a municipal or other public owner or operator, but excluding facilities owned by the owner of a private residence, for utility service solely for such residence, regardless of whether such owner or operator is otherwise subject to the jurisdiction of the Department of Public Utility Control. (An "excavator" or "public agency" may also be a "public utility"); (4) "Central clearinghouse" means the single organization established by the public utilities pursuant to section 16-348 of the Connecticut General Statutes for the purpose of receiving and giving notice of excavation activity within the state; (5) "Excavation" means an operation for the purposes of movement or removal of earth, rock or other materials in or on the ground, or otherwise disturbing the subsurface of the earth, by the use of powered or mechanized equipment, including but not limited to digging, blasting, auguring, back filling, test boring, drilling, pile driving, grading, plowing-in, hammering pulling-in, trenching and tunneling. Reclaimation processes, and milling; excluding the movement of earth by tools manipulated only by human or animal power and the tilling of soil for agricultural purposes; (6) "Demolition" means the wrecking, razing, rending, moving or removing of any structure; (7) "Damage" includes but is not limited to the substantial weakening of structural or lateral support of a utility line, penetration or destruction of any utility line protective coating, housing or other protective device or the severance, partial or complete, of any utility line and "contact" includes, without limitation, the striking, scraping or denting, however slight, of any underground utility facility including any underground utility line protective coating, housing or other protective device, or any significant weakening or disturbance of the structural or lateral support of any underground utility facility; (8) "Approximate location of underground facilities" means a strip of land not more than three feet wide or a strip of land extending not more than one and one-half feet on either side of the underground facilities; (9) "Department" means the Department of Public Utility Control or its successor; (10) "At or near" means within the same subsection of a section in the standard grid system established or to be established pursuant to sections 16-345-1 to 16-345-9, inclusive, of the regulations of Connecticut state agencies, when such term is used in connection with a proposed excavation, discharge of explosives or demolition; (11) "Standard grid system" means a grid system established or to be established by the central clearinghouse and approved by the Department; (12) "Facilities" means any wire, cable, pipe, vault, storage tank, transformer, or other similar property or equipment owned by public utilities for furnishing electric distribution or transmission services, gas, telephone, telegraph, communications and pipeline (whether for hire or not), sewage (including storm sewers, sanitary sewers and drainage systems, or parts thereof), water, community television antenna, steam, traffic signal, fire signal or similar service, regardless of whether such property or equipment is located on land owned by a person or public agency or whether it is located within an easement or right of way, but excluding such property or equipment owned by the owner of a private residence for utility service solely for such residence; and (13) "Registered" when used in connection with a public utility's facilities, includes such facilities known to the Department and the central clearinghouse to the extent that the central clearinghouse has sufficient information to provide notification service as required by subsection (d) of section 16-345 of the Connecticut General Statutes.