ABOUT NAPUA
We are in Our Founding Stage
The North American Private Utility Association is an independent standards body established to provide lifecycle governance for privately owned buried utility infrastructure on private property across the United States and Canada. NAPUA exists to close the structural gap between design phase investigation, public locate systems, and private locating prior to ground disturbance.
NAPUA is currently in its founding phase, establishing governance structures, defining initial guidance priorities, and assembling balanced board and committee representation. Click below to read our founding overview.
Why NAPUA Exists
Private property damage events rarely begin in the field. They originate earlier in the project lifecycle when subsurface risk is not properly investigated, documented, or coordinated.
Across North America, Subsurface Utility Engineering, public locate systems, and private locating operate in separate lanes. Each addresses a defined portion of subsurface risk. What has been missing is a unified lifecycle framework connecting these lanes on private property.
NAPUA was established to define that structure.
Our Mission
NAPUA exists to bring structure to the ground disturbance phase of the project lifecycle, where buried utility infrastructure is physically encountered and risk is highest.
We establish standardized lifecycle gap analysis, define operational best practices for private property ground disturbance, and clarify how subsurface risk should be identified, documented, and assigned when earlier design-phase investigation has not occurred.
Where NAPUA Fits in the Ground Disturbance Lifecycle
Ground disturbance is not a single event. It is the final phase of a project lifecycle that begins in design.
When Subsurface Utility Engineering is performed early, subsurface uncertainty is reduced before construction. When it is not, that uncertainty is carried forward and physically encountered during ground disturbance.
Private locating operates in that final phase. It is the last structured checkpoint before buried utility infrastructure can be contacted or damaged.
Read more about how NAPUA integrates public locate systems, SUE, and private locating into a coherent lifecycle model.
Why NAPUA Matters
The Legal Reality of Ground Disturbance on Private Property
Ground disturbance near buried infrastructure carries legal, financial, and safety consequences that are often underestimated on private property. This risk is greatest on private property, where regulatory clarity often stops at the edge of the public right of way.
NAPUA exists to address this gap...