A OSHA inspector told me, it,s a min of $7.000 fine and if a death happen I.E operator or groundy there could be criminal charges for approching a energized line for non cert contractors now my ? is in Z133 it states 10' for 00 -1 volt as the voltage go up the approch distance go up, so data com lines isnt there small amount of voltage traveling threw them .
Not entirely true. OSHA has a penalty schedule for infractions across the board. Any OSHA violation carries a mandatory fine up to $7000. Working too close to energized lines is a violation without proper training, so if you get fined it will be up to $7000 for the first offense. This fine does not go to the employee, the employer gets the infraction. Repeated offenses carry fines up to $70,000. Wilful violation, ie you or your employer know you should not be doing something but do it anyhow, gets you a minimum penalty of $6000 and a maximum penalty of $70,000 per.
Criminal charges of course will be incurred if you are found guilty of violating OSHA standards and someone dies as a result.
10' is the minimum recommended approach for power lines but as carrying capacity goes up so does arcing distance. Power lines generally have little insulation so the danger is much greater. No, that black coating is not insulation, its a protective coating to reduce oxidation. Data and phone lines do carry voltage, not as much as a power line but enough to whack you good. However, most are insulated and shielded and unless they are compromised the danger is much less.
That being said, unless you have training in this area and know what is what, you assume all lines are energized and you don't go near them, period.
For what its worth, if you are going to do this kind of work on any sort of long term or regular basis, take the OSHA 10 course at least so you get some sort of idea of how things work, and maybe get some more in depth safety training that is more specific to the tree industry.
