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NW Ohio,near Findlay | Agree with pig, I'm the guy that has destroyed more pipeline right of ways, overhead right of ways. Where I worked we had the dozers, pans, excavators to do the work.
Again, all depends on what kind of pipeline they are installing. High pressure lines, most of those companies will have their own equipment, operators, beware. If that is what you are dealing with, good luck. Will talk farm fields, house areas, another set of rules apply. Farmers sometimes want topsoil pushed off first, but that causes problems. Right of way width is limited, don't want to get out of that area. Topsoil one way, clay the other side of trench, leaves them no room to work. Pushing the topsoil off, piled to the edge of right of way, then piling clay in front of it, don't work that good. Have to pull clay back in with excavator first, then dozer to push topsoil over the clay, clay isn't settled, that is where we get thin topsoil after all done. Compete area all messed up.
Everything depends on the weather, just like farming. At times, we have crossed fields in one day laying city water lines. Usually not that long of runs like miles and miles of pipelines. Excavator operator can take topsoil off trench and lay it back, stack the clay next to the trench, another small excavator lays sticks of waterline as needed, pulls clay back in as they move along. I followed with smaller dozer and somewhat packed down the trench, pushed topsoil over trench, allowing enough for settling.
The big thing to watch for is tile crossing, this is where the owner has to be informed. The trench has to be backfilled with stone and ridged sewer pipe, with correct fittings used. None of this plastic flex and stick it in the trench. Our company was good at this, we had a backhoe, loader on job just for this, and stone on dump truck. After pipe in trench, backfill up to flow line of field tile with stone, dig back into original ground, use proper fitting and replace will solid pipe, and LET THE FARMER SEE IT REPAIRED.
The worst thing ever to cross you land is a deep sewer trench, maybe gravel or bed rock. That happened years ago, a farmer owned some of the best ground ever, next to a large city, golf course. Basically farmer had no choice, don't know all the legal stuff, but he got paid for it.
We were hired by the farmer to strip the complete right of way area, pile the topsoil with earth movers at the back of right of way. The front side had to be open for them to drop the 48 inch pipe in with cranes. We wanted to pile the topsoil totally away from right of way, in farmer owned field, but that was not a option.
Once the big, boy contractors moved in, everything went downhill fast. Ground water was more than expected, tried to de-water, big trench boxes, lots of pumps, can't get rock trencher in hole, drill rock and blast with mats, lots blasted rocks, too wet to get trucks in to haul sand and rocks away, dozer to push back, all over the topsoil. Might add, year of the flood in the city too, really bad now. Had to get bigger crane to set pipe, had to get off road haul trucks to get bedding stone in to cover sewer. Basically a 200 foot wide pile mess, took months to complete.
We never went back to do anything. Total project went broke, bonding company had to finish project, clean up following year.
The older farmer that owned land, sad, but he went downhill fast too, sold it to high end sub division project. All this mess is now in backyards of expensive houses, next to a golf course. Farmer gone, kids got rich, beautiful 80 acre farm land gone.
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Damages from pipeline
