Marietta Sewer and Drain Guide for Homeowners

Who provides sewer service here

Marietta Water says it has been part of the community for more than 100 years and provides water and sewer service, including protecting the environment during wastewater collection. It buys finished drinking water from the Cobb County-Marietta Water Authority (Marietta Water). The utility sits under the Board of Lights and Water (BLW), which the city code authorizes to build, maintain and operate the city's water, sewer and electric systems (Marietta Code § 6-4-010).

Not every Marietta address is on Marietta Water's sewer. The city's development code says sewer connections are reviewed by the governing utility, which it names as either Marietta Water or Cobb County Water System. The same section requires connection to the public sanitary sewer and allows an exemption from connecting only in special circumstances, with approval from the utility and the Cobb County Board of Health, when the utility finds sewer service unavailable (Marietta Code § 732.03). Check which utility bills you for sewer. If it is Cobb County Water System, the Cobb County page applies instead of this one.

Marietta Water is also replacing aging pipe. In May 2026 it began replacing about 3,800 feet of 8- to 12-inch sewer mains in the area around Wellstar Kennestone Regional Medical Center, with completion expected in early 2027 (City of Marietta).

Where your responsibility ends

Marietta's Power & Water FAQ answers the question directly. Nearly all service-line blockages, it says, come from material entering the sewer from the building or from the roots of trees and shrubs near the service line on private property, and the property owner must remove a blockage even when it is under a road right-of-way or inside a sewer easement (Marietta FAQ).

The same answer sets out two kinds of city help:

1. Clearing. If you have hired a licensed plumber or contractor who can't restore service, the Water and Sewer Department will help remove a blockage in a public road right-of-way or a BLW easement. The plumber calls the department, must have the service line dug up and exposed, and must be on site when the crew arrives. The department only removes the blockage; restoring the line and your property stays with your plumber.
2. Broken pipe. If a failed pipe in the right-of-way or a BLW easement caused the blockage, the department repairs the line within those areas.

How Marietta's approach compares with other Georgia utilities is covered in who is responsible for the sewer line. This page is general information, not legal advice; Marietta Water can tell you how its rules apply at your address.

If sewage backs up

The FAQ lists a Marietta Water dispatch number for water outages and water or wastewater emergencies (Marietta FAQ). The city says operation, maintenance and repair crews are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week to respond to sewer spills, and it asks anyone who sees or smells a spill to report it right away (Wastewater Overflow Prevention).

For a backup inside your house, the FAQ's process applies: your plumber clears your line first and brings in the department only for a blockage in the right-of-way or a BLW easement that can't be cleared. A street storm drain that backs up in the rain is a Public Works matter rather than Marietta Water's (Marietta FAQ). For the first steps inside the house, see what to do in a sewer backup.

Repairs, permits and inspections

Inside city limits, the City of Marietta's building division issues plumbing permits, and it says a plumbing permit is required for all work on a plumbing system, including sewer lines. Applications go through the city's online SagesGov system; after the permit is paid, processing takes one to two business days. The city began phasing out virtual inspections on November 1, 2024, and now performs inspections in person (Plumbing Permits).

Homeowners doing their own projects can use the city's homeowner permit process. The same page explains how to tell whether a property is inside city limits: a tax district of "(4) MARIETTA" on the county parcel record means city, and "(9) UNINCORPORATED" means Cobb County's jurisdiction (Homeowners Building Permit). For hiring a plumber and checking a license, see how to hire a drain cleaning company in Georgia.

Exposing a service line means digging. Georgia 811 asks for a free locate request at least three business days before any digging, and state law requires one before digging with mechanized equipment. The sewer utility's duty under that law is to help locate laterals up to the edge of the public right-of-way, not across your yard (Georgia 811; Georgia dig law).

Grease, wipes and rainwater

Marietta Water calls grease buildup one of the major causes of sewer blockages and the overflows that follow. Its grease control program requires traps or interceptors at restaurants, schools, churches, daycares and other food preparation sites, and its environmental compliance staff inspect more than 315 facilities in the city (Grease Control). At home, the city's advice for preventing spills is to put grease in the trash rather than the drain, plant trees away from sewer lines and keep garbage out of manholes (Wastewater Overflow Prevention).

Rainwater is not allowed in the sewer. Marietta's code bans discharging stormwater, groundwater, roof runoff, subsurface drainage or cooling water into any sewer (Marietta Code § 6-16-090), so a downspout or yard drain tied into your sewer line needs to come out. For roots and household habits, see tree roots in sewer lines and what not to flush or pour.

Cities and communities served

Marietta Water's sewer serves part of the City of Marietta. Addresses in the city that Cobb County Water System serves follow the county's rules, so the table notes both possibilities.

Next step

Before you pay a plumber to dig toward the street, ask Marietta Water whether the blockage or break is in the right-of-way or a BLW easement. Under its FAQ, a failed pipe there is the department's to repair, and a stubborn blockage there can be cleared by its crew with your plumber on site.