Des Moines, Iowa — A suit against a Sheldon company for a “One Call” violation is one of four filed recently by Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller.
Miller has filed four lawsuits — one each in Davis, Marion, Sioux, and Taylor counties alleging contractors conducted illegal excavations, some of which damaged underground utility lines, in violation of the “Iowa One Call” law.
All four of the cases were resolved with consent decrees, with civil penalties totaling $24,500. The four defendants admitted to the violations and agreed not to violate the One Call law in the future.
Additionally, the AG’s Office sent warning letters to six utility companies as a result of numerous violations of locating requirements in Iowa’s One Call law.
The Sioux County case arose in November 2019, when ID Excavating and Tiling of Sheldon is said to have failed to provide 48 hours’ notice of planned excavations to install drainage tile in Boyden, according to the lawsuit. The company proceeded with the excavation without having the underground facilities located and marked. During the excavation, ID Excavating’s equipment is said to have hit and damaged a two-inch diameter natural gas pipeline under 655 pounds per square inch of pressure, which is owned and operated by Northern Natural Gas. The damage resulted in the loss of service to 277 MidAmerican Energy Co. customers.
The Attorney General’s office says ID Excavating agreed to resolve the matter with a consent decree, wherein the company admitted to the violations and agreed to pay a $6,000 civil penalty in addition to injunctive relief prohibiting future violations.
The One Call law requires anyone who digs, excavates, or trenches privately or commercially to first contact the Iowa One Call center to locate underground utilities. The law also requires that the owners and operators of utilities timely and accurately locate and mark underground facilities in response to a locate request for a planned excavation.
