NESC® Requirements (Clearances)

The rules for separation between the various facilities, as well as clearances above roadways and from other surfaces, are provided in detail in the NESC. The relevant section on such clearance requirements is the most extensive and prescriptive of the various sections of the NESC, including associated conditions and numerous tables. However, the NESC rules for such separation may be considered as in two general categories, including those whose primary function is (i) to protect the public and (ii) to protect the utility workers. Particularly important clearances are those that separate the supply lines from the communications lines, defined as the “communication worker safety zone.”