WASHINGTON (July 27, 2020) – Common Ground Alliance (CGA), the stakeholder-driven organization dedicated to protecting underground infrastructure, including oil, gas, telecommunications, and electric utilities, announced Crown Castle, the nation’s largest provider of shared communications infrastructure, as its newest platinum member.
As a member of CGA, Crown Castle will work in partnership with 240 other member companies to advance education and policymaking initiatives that protect underground infrastructure and the people that work on them at the local and national levels. CGA provides a forum for coordination across industries that will allow Crown Castle to share best practices in preventing damage to communications infrastructure and to enhance the company’s high standards for protecting utilities.
CGA worked with industry stakeholders to secure the federally designated call-before-you-dig phone number 811, which has now been in operation for more than a decade. Since 811’s inception, the rate of damage to buried utilities has decreased by more than 50 percent. CGA and its members also produce an annual Best Practices Guide (now in its 17.0 edition) regarded as a trusted resource for underground damage prevention and the annual DIRT (Damage Information and Reporting Tool) Report detailing the state of damage prevention in the U.S. CGA members meet regularly in committees to develop damage prevention initiatives in technology, education and marketing, and stakeholder outreach.
“For Crown Castle, protecting employees and the infrastructure that is so vital to the communities in which we live and work is our top priority. We are proud to support CGA's mission to enhance the safety of underground utilities and look forward to working with our partners across industries to advance efforts that maximize the safety of our operations,” said Chris Levendos, Vice of President of Network Engineering and Operations at Crown Castle.
“We’re proud to welcome Crown Castle as CGA’s newest member and look forward to collaborating with their team to reduce damages to underground utilities,” said Sarah K. Magruder Lyle, President and CEO of the Common Ground Alliance. “Communications infrastructure is an increasingly critical component of our lives, and as our need for connectivity continues to expand companies like Crown Castle will help ensure that this growth is done with safety in mind for existing underground infrastructure.”
About CGA
CGA is a member-driven association of more than 1,700 individuals, organizations and sponsors in every facet of the underground utility industry. Established in 2000, CGA is committed to saving lives and preventing damage to North American underground infrastructure by promoting effective damage prevention practices. CGA has established itself as the leading organization in an effort to reduce damages to underground facilities in North America through shared responsibility among all stakeholders. For more information, visit CGA on the web at http://www.commongroundalliance.com.
About Crown Castle
Crown Castle owns, operates and leases more than 40,000 cell towers and approximately 80,000 route miles of fiber supporting small cells and fiber solutions across every major U.S. market. This nationwide portfolio of communications infrastructure connects cities and communities to essential data, technology and wireless service - bringing information, ideas and innovations to the people and businesses that need them. For more information on Crown Castle, please visit www.crowncastle.com.