OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH
APPEALS BOARD

Summary of Ranger Pipeline, Inc. - DAR

An employee entered a trench that had been dug to a depth of slightly over 5' but had been backfilled with gravel until it was less than 5' deep. The Division cited Employer under section 1541.1(a)(1) for no protective system on the theory that the real trench bottom was more than 5' deep and Portanova, 83-891 says that an employee on a pipe in a trench is still exposed. The Board held that the bottom of the trench was the level to which it has been backfilled so the trench was less than 5' deep when the employee entered it. No violation was found.

RANGER PIPELINE, INC. 97-1031
February 28, 2001