Trench Safety

General
Provisions of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) apply to all federal, state and LG projects. According to OSHA, dozens of people are killed each year and hundreds are injured in trenches on construction sites. The
LGPM Guide
describes trench safety requirements established by OSHA.To assure trench safety receives the attention it deserves,
Texas Health and Safety Code, Chapter 756 Subchapter C
outlines several construction project requirements. Additional guidance can also be found in
Section 6.4 of TxDOT’s Geotechnical Manual
.
Federal Requirements
  1. 29 CFR Part 1926 Subpart P
    – Sets forth specific excavation requirements and requirements for protective systems established by OSHA to be utilized in excavation and trenching on construction projects involving open excavations.
State Requirements
  1. Texas Health and Safety Code §756.022
    – Trench Excavation in State – Requires any bid documents (if bid documents are used) and the construction contract to contain the following provisions for any trench excavation exceeding a depth of five feet:
    1. a reference to OSHA standards for trench safety;
    2. a copy of special shoring requirements, if any, of the state or of a political subdivision in which the construction project is located, with a separate pay item for the special shoring requirements;
    3. a copy of any geotechnical information obtained by the LG for use in the design of the trench safety system; and
    4. a separate pay item for trench excavation safety protection.
  2. Texas Health and Safety Code §756.023 – Trench Excavation for Political Subdivision
    – Requires the same bid and contract provisions as
    Texas Health and Safety Code §756.022
    plus additional requirements for cities and counties. The political subdivisions are required to have pay item for trench excavation safety protection and must be based on the linear feet of trench excavated or square foot of shoring used.
Required Practices
The LG’s contractor must follow trench safety guidelines for all projects as described in the required practices in the
LGPM Guide
.