Septic permits & records
Jones County Environmental Health (North Central Health District)
- Address
- Jones County Health Department, 114 Forest Street, Gray, GA 31032
- Phone
- (478) 986-3164
- Hours
- Monday-Friday 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
Gray, GA · Jones County
Septic installation, septic repair, clearing and grading in Gray and the rest of Jones County.
Gray, Jones County. ZIP code 31032.
- Lake Oconee & Lake Sinclair
- Residential & commercial
- 10% off: military & first responders
Get a free estimate
or call (678) 863-5620The short answer
Do homes in Gray, GA use septic or sewer?
The City of Gray provides sewer only to a limited extent, so many homes in and around town, and most of Jones County, run on septic permitted by Jones County Environmental Health on Forest Street. A Class Septic Services installs and repairs those septic systems and drain fields and does the clearing, grading and trenching around them.↗↗
Reviewed by A Class Septic Services · Last updated
The Gray story
Macon's edge, the lake country's back door
Gray is the Jones County seat and part of the Macon metro, a town of about 3,400 on US 129 where GA 11, GA 18 and GA 22 all come through. It has no lake of its own. What it has is newer houses: the median home in Gray was built in 1997, and more than four out of five units are single-family detached.↗↗↗
Lake Sinclair is still close by road. GA 22 runs northeast out of Gray past Lake Jonesco Golf Course and through Haddock into Baldwin County, where it meets the southern end of GA 212; follow 212 and Twin Bridges Road leads down to the lake's northwest arms. Plenty of Jones County families end up with a second place on that water.↗↗
Back home, the county's own plan is blunt about septic. It says many unincorporated properties are still not served by county water or sewer, and that residents live with minimal or poor well and septic function, including backups in homes and yards. That is the repair side of our work here; the growth along the county's main roads is the installation side.↗
Sewer or septic?
A small city sewer and a county on septic
The City of Gray's Water/Sewer Department has more than 3,300 customers, but it describes its sewer as provided to city residents only to a limited extent. Wastewater goes to the Wolf Creek plant on Homestead Drive, which a $9 million state loan in 2021 doubled from 0.4 to 0.8 million gallons a day.↗↗
Jones County Water Systems, the other utility, runs over 200 miles of water main but only about 60 miles of sewer pipe. Water reaches far more houses than sewer does, which is why so many Jones homes have a city or county water meter and a septic tank in the back yard.↗
How to tell which one you have
- A sewer charge on a City of Gray or Jones County Water Systems bill means public sewer.
- A water bill with no sewer line item means septic.
- Jones County Environmental Health can check for a septic permit on the parcel.
Local facts
Gray and Jones County, by the numbers
Each row links to the agency, code or publisher it comes from. Tap a source to check it yourself.
| Topic | What it says | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Wolf Creek WPCP | 163 Homestead Drive, NPDES GA0026085; permit effective to Feb. 28, 2027 | EPA ECHO Detailed Facility Report: Gray Wolf Creek WPCP, NPDES GA0026085 |
| Plant expansion | 0.4 to 0.8 MGD, financed by a $9 million, 30-year state loan at 1.86% | WaterWorld: Georgia provides $39 million in water loans (Aug. 27, 2021) |
| Sewer repairs | A $10 million effort against inflow in the city's collection system; manholes and lines already replaced | Joint Comprehensive Plan for Jones County and the City of Gray (2017 update), GA DCA |
| County water source | Crystalline-rock aquifers through four groundwater plants and eight deep wells | Jones County Water System 2025 Consumer Confidence Report |
| Residential water deposit (city) | $100; tap and access fees quoted by the Water Department | City of Gray, GA: Utility Billing Information |
| Founded / county seat | Founded 1851; Jones County seat in 1905; incorporated 1911 | Wikipedia: Gray, Georgia |
Soil & terrain
On the ridge between two rivers
Gray sits right on the Ocmulgee-Oconee divide. West-side creeks feed Walnut Creek toward the Ocmulgee and Macon; east-side creeks feed Commissioner Creek toward the Oconee and Lake Sinclair's river. A single subdivision can drain both ways.↗↗
The soil at the center of town is Davidson loam on 2 to 6 percent slopes, moderately eroded, which NRCS rates only somewhat limited for septic fields: about as good as Middle Georgia ground gets. Davidson's deep red clay drains well, but trenches cut in it while wet smear shut, so field work waits for dry weather.↗↗
Permits · Jones County Environmental Health (North Central Health District), 114 Forest Street, Gray
Septic permits in Jones County
- 01
Apply at the Jones County Health Department, 114 Forest Street, (478) 986-3164, for a construction or repair permit; the office is open weekdays 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.↗
- 02
If the lot needs a private well, the well permit comes first, with a site evaluation to locate it.↗
- 03
Keep the drain field 100 feet from any well and 50 feet from ponds and streams; the permit is good for 12 months.↗
- 04
Leave the installed system uncovered for the county's final inspection and written approval.↗
Who to call at the county
Who signs off on a Gray septic or utility job
- City of Gray Water/Sewer Department Water in town and parts of the county; sewer to city residents to a limited extentOffice at 109 James Street. Ask here first whether a lot inside the limits can reach a gravity or force main.↗
- Jones County Water Systems County water service outside the city systemThe county publishes an application fee and deposits but not its tap fees, so price a new meter by phone before you budget the lot.↗
On the map
Gray on the US 129 and GA 22 crossroads
Gray, Jones County: north of Macon, west of Lake Sinclair via GA 22 and Haddock
US 129 runs north toward Eatonton; GA 22 heads east through Haddock toward Milledgeville and the GA 212 side of Lake Sinclair.
SourceServices here
Gray jobs we take on
- 01Septic System RepairThe backups and soggy yards the county plan describes.Septic System Repair details
- 02Drain Field Installation & RepairReplacing fields on 1990s and 2000s subdivision lots.Drain Field Installation & Repair details
- 03Septic System InstallationNew homes on rural Jones acreage off the sewer lines.Septic System Installation details
- 04Land & Lot ClearingPine lots, planned around the summer burn ban.Land & Lot Clearing details
- 05Grading & Driveway PreparationHouse pads and drives on new county lots.Grading & Driveway Preparation details
- 06Storm Shelters & Safe RoomsExcavation for in-ground shelters built to FEMA safe-room criteria.Storm Shelters & Safe Rooms details
FAQ
Gray septic questions
Straight answers, with the rule or record behind them. Still unsure? Call and ask the crew that digs.
(678) 863-5620Who permits septic systems in Gray and Jones County?
Jones County Environmental Health, part of the North Central Health District, at 114 Forest Street in Gray; (478) 986-3164, weekdays 8 to 4:30.
Source: North Central Health District: Jones County Environmental Health Department
Is the City of Gray on sewer?
Partly. The city says it provides sewer to residents only to a limited extent, through the Wolf Creek plant, while its water reaches parts of unincorporated Jones County.
Why does Jones County have so many septic problems?
The county's joint plan says many unincorporated properties still lack county water or sewer, leaving some residents with poor well and septic function and backups in homes and yards.
Source: Joint Comprehensive Plan for Jones County and the City of Gray (2017 update), GA DCA
How much sewer does Jones County Water Systems have?
About 60 miles of sewer pipe, against more than 200 miles of water main, seven treatment plants and nine towers.
Can I burn brush when clearing land near Gray?
Not from May 1 through September 30: Jones is on EPD's 2026 open-burning ban list, in the West Central District. Chip or haul the debris during those months.
Source: GA EPD press release, Apr. 29, 2026: Annual Ban on Open Burning
What does a Jones County sewer bill look like?
Jones County Water Systems charges a $24.19 sewer base plus $6.27 per 1,000 gallons on all water used.
Do you dig for storm shelters in Gray?
Yes, storm shelters and safe rooms are on our service list. FEMA defines a safe room as a hardened structure built to its criteria for near-absolute protection in extreme wind.
Source: FEMA: Safe Rooms
Sources
Where these facts come from
Rules, costs and local facts on this page link to the agency, code or publisher that states them. Cost figures are third-party market ranges, not our prices — estimates are free.
Reviewed by A Class Septic Services · Last updated
- 1City of Gray, GA: Water/Sewer Department
- 2North Central Health District: Jones County Environmental Health Department
- 3Wikipedia: Gray, Georgia
- 4Wikipedia: Georgia State Route 22
- 5Census Reporter: Gray, GA (ACS 2024 5-year)
- 6Visit Milledgeville: Twin Bridges Landing
- 7Joint Comprehensive Plan for Jones County and the City of Gray (2017 update), GA DCA
- 8CityPopulation.de: Georgia counties and places (Census 2010, 2020 and 2025 estimates)
- 9WaterWorld: Georgia provides $39 million in water loans (Aug. 27, 2021)
- 10Jones County, GA: Jones County Water Systems
- 11Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. r. 511-3-1-.03, General Requirements for On-Site Sewage Management Systems (LII)
- 12EPA ECHO Detailed Facility Report: Gray Wolf Creek WPCP, NPDES GA0026085
- 13Jones County Water System 2025 Consumer Confidence Report
- 14City of Gray, GA: Utility Billing Information
- 15Wikipedia: Jones County, Georgia
- 16USDA NRCS Soil Data Access: map unit at Gray's Census centroid (33.0020, -83.5409)
- 17USDA NRCS Official Series Description: Davidson series
- 18Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. R. 511-3-1-.07, Absorption Fields (LII)
- 19GA EPD press release, Apr. 29, 2026: Annual Ban on Open Burning
- 20FEMA: Safe Rooms
Ready when you are
Backup in the yard, or a new lot in Jones? Septic and dirt work in one call.
Call A Class Septic Services for septic repair, drain fields, new systems, clearing and grading in Gray and across Jones County.
(678) 863-5620- Lake Oconee & Lake Sinclair
- Residential & commercial
- 10% off for military & first responders
Free estimate
or call (678) 863-5620