Ontario Regulation 34/26 under the Ontario Underground Infrastructure Notification System Act, 2012 (S.O. 2012, c. 4), establishes the prescribed circumstances under which an excavation or dig may continue after the expiry of the original locate validity period. The regulation, made on February 20, 2026, provides specific requirements for excavators to ensure the ongoing safety of underground infrastructure and maintain regulatory compliance.

The regulation applies primarily to excavators identified in the locate document submitted under sections 6(1) or 7(10) of the Act. For these excavators, continuation beyond the locate validity period is permitted only if several conditions are met. First, the excavation site must not contain transmission infrastructure, and the digging must occur at least one metre below the lowest identified underground infrastructure. The excavator must retain care and control of the site throughout the extended period.

A central requirement is the submission of a written statement to the Ontario Underground Infrastructure Notification System Corporation confirming that certain conditions remain unchanged. This statement must be provided no earlier than 15 days before, and no later than 10 days before, the expiry of the original validity period. The statement must affirm that there have been no changes to the location of the excavation, the description of the dig site, the identified underground infrastructure, the conditions outlined in the locate document, or the excavation methods and depth.

Additionally, the excavator must provide undertakings to the Corporation within the same 15-to-10-day window. These undertakings ensure that affected members will have continued access to the excavation site for on-site inspections of underground infrastructure and that the excavator will notify the Corporation if any relevant circumstances change.

To document compliance, the excavator must retain at the excavation site both the original locate document and the Corporation’s confirmation that it has received the written statement and undertakings. Moreover, the number of days since the issuance of the last locate document, as reported by affected members, must not exceed 180 days.

The regulation also accounts for excavators who rely on information from another excavator, as permitted under section 11 of the Act. In these cases, continuation beyond the validity period requires the same conditions to be satisfied for the original excavator. The second excavator must maintain a copy of the other excavator’s locate document at the dig site, preserve all relevant information received, and ensure that the prescribed circumstances—such as site safety, undertakings, and documentation—exist with respect to the original excavator.

Ontario (34/2026) March 11, 2026
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