Wastewater operator continuing education

Classifying Trench Soil: Two Tests, Five Traps

Pending state approval in Illinois (Pending)

Misclassifying trench soil can lead to unsafe excavations and trench collapses, risking serious injury and plant damage. This hour shows how to identify soil types correctly using two tests, spot common mistakes, and follow OSHA rules to keep trenches safe.

Course summary, as it appears on your certificate

To equip wastewater operators with critical knowledge and practical skills to classify trench soil safely and effectively, recognize common pitfalls, and apply OSHA excavation safety standards to prevent trench collapses and associated hazards at wastewater treatment sites.

We can't sell this in Illinois yet. Tell us where you are and we'll email you the day it opens — nothing else, and one click to stop. Tell me when it opens

Level 1 — what it is and why — the foundations, for operators new to the subject or wanting a refresher

Credit awarded: 1 hour — Safety

The Illinois course number is issued by the Agency for this course and is printed on your certificate.

One hour of study is one hour of credit. Your certificate reports the hours, which is what Illinois records against your renewal.

What's included

  • Self-paced online coursework you can start, pause, and resume anytime
  • Short questions along the way, and a short final quiz to pass for your certificate (retake it as often as you need)
  • An official certificate of completion (PDF) with a public verification code
  • Progress saved to your My Learning dashboard
$19.00 USD

One-time payment · lifetime access to this course

About 71 minutes of video · 1 hour