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Trenching job hazard analysis (JHA) template

A trench can collapse with no warning, and a cave-in is the hazard to plan for first. OSHA requires each worker in an excavation to be protected from cave-ins by an adequate protective system, with narrow exceptions (29 CFR 1926.652(a)(1)). Locate utilities first, protect the walls, and keep a way out close by.

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The task

Opening, working in and backfilling a utility trench, with a protective system, access and egress, and daily inspection by a competent person.

Steps, hazards and controls

Controls run from most effective to least. A citation beside a control means an OSHA paragraph requires it; with no citation it is good practice.

StepHazardControls
1. Plan the dig and locate utilitiesDigging into a gas, electric, water or sewer line
  1. Eliminate: Reroute the trench or use trenchless methods where a line cannot be moved or de-energized.
  2. Administrative control: Find the estimated location of utilities before opening the excavation. (29 CFR 1926.651(b)(1))
  3. Administrative control: Contact the utility owners and ask them to mark their lines before digging starts. (29 CFR 1926.651(b)(2))
  4. Administrative control: Find the exact location by safe means, such as careful hand digging, when you get close. (29 CFR 1926.651(b)(3))
Adjacent walls, sidewalks or foundations are undermined
  1. Engineering control: Shore, brace or underpin structures that the dig could destabilize. (29 CFR 1926.651(i)(1))
  2. Administrative control: Have the competent person review nearby loads, traffic and structures before work starts.
2. Set up the siteVehicles, equipment or spoil pile fall or roll into the trench
  1. Engineering control: Keep spoil and equipment at least 2 feet from the edge, or use retaining devices. (29 CFR 1926.651(j)(2))
  2. Engineering control: Barricade or flag the open trench so nobody walks or drives into it.
  3. Administrative control: Plan haul routes and mark where trucks load so they never pass the edge.
Struck by traffic
  1. Engineering control: Separate the work area from traffic with cones, barriers and flaggers as the plan requires.
  2. PPE: Wear a high-visibility vest or garment made of reflective material when exposed to public traffic. (29 CFR 1926.651(d))
3. Excavate and install the protective systemCave-in while the trench is open
  1. Engineering control: Protect each employee in the trench with a sloping, benching, support or shield system, unless the stable rock or shallow exceptions apply. (29 CFR 1926.652(a)(1))
  2. Engineering control: Select and build sloping and benching or shielding by one of the allowed design options. (29 CFR 1926.652(b))
  3. Engineering control: Keep the support system installation close behind the digging. (29 CFR 1926.652(e)(2)(ii))
  4. Administrative control: Keep employees out of the trench until the protective system is in place.
Excavation below the shield or support
  1. Engineering control: Dig no more than 2 feet below the bottom of support members, and only if the system is designed for the full depth. (29 CFR 1926.652(e)(2)(i))
  2. Administrative control: Never let members carry more load than they were designed to withstand. (29 CFR 1926.652(e)(1)(iii))
4. Provide a way in and outWorker cannot get out fast during a collapse or flood
  1. Engineering control: Place a ladder, stairway, ramp or other safe means of egress within 25 feet of lateral travel in trenches 4 feet or deeper. (29 CFR 1926.651(c)(2))
  2. Administrative control: Keep the ladder top above the edge and clear of spoil.
5. Test the air and control waterLow oxygen or toxic or flammable gas
  1. Engineering control: Test the atmosphere before entry in trenches deeper than 4 feet where a hazardous atmosphere could exist, and ventilate as needed. (29 CFR 1926.651(g)(1)(i))
  2. Engineering control: Ventilate to prevent flammable gas above the limit in the standard. (29 CFR 1926.651(g)(1)(iii))
  3. PPE: Provide respiratory protection when ventilation alone is not enough. (29 CFR 1926.651(g)(1)(ii))
Water accumulates in the trench
  1. Engineering control: Pump or divert water, and have the competent person monitor the pumping. (29 CFR 1926.651(h)(2))
  2. Administrative control: Keep workers out of trenches with accumulated or accumulating water unless precautions protect them. (29 CFR 1926.651(h)(1))
6. Inspect dailyChanges in soil, rain or vibration weaken the walls
  1. Administrative control: Have a competent person inspect the excavation, adjacent areas and protective system daily, before work starts and as conditions change. (29 CFR 1926.651(k)(1))
  2. Administrative control: Remove workers from the area if the competent person sees signs of a cave-in, system failure or hazardous atmosphere. (29 CFR 1926.651(k)(2))
7. Work in the trench and handle loadsStruck by a load, bucket or pipe
  1. Eliminate: Set pipe and materials from the surface with equipment when the job allows.
  2. Administrative control: Do not permit anyone under loads handled by lifting or digging equipment. (29 CFR 1926.651(e))
  3. Administrative control: Use hand signals or a signal person between the operator and the pipe layer.
  4. PPE: Wear a hard hat, steel-toe boots and gloves.
8. Remove protection and backfillCollapse while the support is removed
  1. Engineering control: Start removal at the bottom of the excavation and release members slowly, watching for any sign of failure or cave-in. (29 CFR 1926.652(e)(1)(v))
  2. Engineering control: Backfill together with removal of the support system. (29 CFR 1926.652(e)(1)(vi))
  3. Administrative control: Add extra support before temporarily removing any member. (29 CFR 1926.652(e)(1)(iv))

Required PPE

What the standard says

  • Protective systems are required in trenches, with two exceptions. (29 CFR 1926.652(a)(1))

    “Each employee in an excavation shall be protected from cave-ins by an adequate protective system designed in accordance with paragraph (b) or (c) of this section except when:”

  • Trenches 4 feet or deeper need a means of egress within 25 feet of lateral travel. (29 CFR 1926.651(c)(2))

    “A stairway, ladder, ramp or other safe means of egress shall be located in trench excavations that are 4 feet (1.22 m) or more in depth so as to require no more than 25 feet (7.62 m) of lateral travel”

  • Locate utilities before opening the excavation. (29 CFR 1926.651(b)(1))

    “The estimated location of utility installations, such as sewer, telephone, fuel, electric, water lines, or any other underground installations that reasonably may be expected to be encountered during excavation work, shall be determined prior to opening an excavation.”

  • Keep spoil and equipment back from the edge. (29 CFR 1926.651(j)(2))

    “Employees shall be protected from excavated or other materials or equipment that could pose a hazard by falling or rolling into excavations.”

  • A competent person inspects daily. (29 CFR 1926.651(k)(1))

    “Daily inspections of excavations, the adjacent areas, and protective systems shall be made by a competent person for evidence of a situation that could result in possible cave-ins, indications of failure of protective systems, hazardous atmospheres, or other hazardous conditions.”

  • No one works under loads handled by lifting or digging equipment. (29 CFR 1926.651(e))

    “No employee shall be permitted underneath loads handled by lifting or digging equipment.”

  • Start support removal at the bottom of the trench. (29 CFR 1926.652(e)(1)(v))

    “Removal shall begin at, and progress from, the bottom of the excavation.”

Frequently asked questions

Does OSHA require a JHA for trenching?
OSHA does not require a written JHA for trenching. It does require protective systems (29 CFR 1926.652(a)(1)) and daily inspection by a competent person (29 CFR 1926.651(k)(1)). The excavation standard has no separate training paragraph, so the general training duty in 29 CFR 1926.21(b)(2) applies. A JHA is a good way to document the plan.
What goes in a trenching JHA?
Include utility locates, site setup, protective system choice, egress, atmosphere testing, water control, daily inspection, material handling and backfill. Add the soil classification and the competent person by name.
How deep before a trench needs a protective system?
A protective system is required unless the excavation is in stable rock, or is less than 5 feet deep and a competent person finds no sign of a potential cave-in (29 CFR 1926.652(a)(1)). Many crews use a shield at any depth as a good practice.

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