The Countryside Alliance is encouraging farmers to complete a survey as part of research into the digging practices of the UK agriculture industry.
The Challenge Linesearch BeforeUdig (LSBUD), the UK’s leading safe digging resource, has helped design the two-minute survey.
A busy network of underground pipes and cables runs beneath the UK’s agricultural land.
These range from electricity, electric vehicle and broadband cables, through to water, gas, chemical and high-pressure fuel pipelines.
Accidentally hitting any of these pipes and cables can have devastating consequences, the Countryside Alliance said in an article to promote the survey.
“It can lead to serious injuries, and in the most unfortunate cases, fatalities. There is also the added disruption to consider. Entire communities can be cut off from important services, and repair costs can add up to thousands of pounds.”
The article added: “Given that plenty of digging activity takes place on agricultural land, from deep groundworks, fencing, hedge planting and subsoiling, to more diverse projects, such as installing mast sites and solar farms, we have joined LSBUD’s mission to raise awareness of the importance of safe digging.”
LSBUD wants to hear from as many farmers as possible. The survey can be completed online.
Richard Broome, managing director of LSBUD, said: “This will tell us how well the industry is performing in terms of safe digging, and what work still needs to be done to help better protect workers and communities from harm and disruption.”
