Median Pay by Area
- Dalton
- $60,380 a year
- Macon-Bibb County
- $53,330 a year
- Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell
- $52,160 a year
- Warner Robins
- $51,250 a year
- Savannah
- $50,830 a year
Georgia wastewater operators
The steps from no certificate to a Georgia Class IV Biological Wastewater Treatment System Operator certificate, the Board-approved course each class needs, how to apply to the Board and take the exam with PSI, how to renew and what operators earn. Every requirement links to the rules of the Georgia State Board of Examiners for Certification of Water and Wastewater Treatment Plant Operators and Laboratory Analysts, or to PSI's Georgia exam page.
Georgia's Board makes the final eligibility determination. Check with Georgia's Board before you apply.
Why it matters
Georgia's rules require biological wastewater treatment system operators, wastewater collection system operators and wastewater laboratory analysts to be certified. An industrial wastewater treatment or pretreatment facility needs only its operator in responsible charge to be certified.
An operator is anyone who makes day-to-day process control decisions that may affect treatment and the quality of the effluent. The operator in responsible charge must hold a certificate of a class equal to or higher than the class of the plant or system, and the Environmental Protection Division (EPD) classifies each plant.
A trainee does not need a certificate but may perform operation duties only under the direct supervision of a certified operator.
Certificates are issued by the Georgia State Board of Examiners for Certification of Water and Wastewater Treatment Plant Operators and Laboratory Analysts. The Board is administered by the Professional Licensing Boards Division of the Georgia Secretary of State.
Wastewater treatment operators are certified as Biological Wastewater Treatment System Operator Class IV, III, II or I. Class IV is the entry class and Class I is the highest. Georgia also certifies Industrial Wastewater Treatment System Operators, Wastewater Collection System Operators and Wastewater Laboratory Analysts separately.
You start at Class IV or Class III with no earlier certificate. You must hold Class III before you take the Class II exam, and Class II before you take the Class I exam.
A Class I, II or III operator may also operate wastewater collection systems and industrial wastewater treatment plants without another certificate. A Class IV operator may operate only Class IV wastewater treatment systems and their collection systems.
Step 1
Every class needs at least a high school diploma or GED, and you send proof with your application.
Before you can be made eligible for an exam, you must complete the Board-approved course for your class, taught by a Board-approved education provider: a 6-hour basic waste stabilization pond operator course for Class IV, a 40-hour basic wastewater operator course for Class III, and 48 hours of advanced wastewater operator courses for Class II. Class I needs no additional course.
The required basic and advanced courses are taught in a classroom or by live webinar. The Board may review college coursework case by case to decide whether it meets the course requirement.
Step 2
With a high school diploma or GED, Class IV needs 1 month of experience, Class III 3 months, Class II 24 months and Class I 36 months.
An accredited associate degree in biology or chemistry lowers Class II to 18 months and Class I to 30 months. An accredited bachelor of science degree in biology or chemistry lowers them to 12 and 24 months. The Board may accept other degrees with enough biology or chemistry.
For Class II and Class I, your experience in actual system operation must be complete before the Board makes you eligible for the exam.
Step 3
You apply to the Board for the certificate you want before you test. The application goes through GOALS, the Secretary of State's online licensing system, with a non-refundable application fee.
The Board considers an application only with documented proof of your required experience, education and course completion.
The Board publishes its fee schedule on its website. Questions about your application go to the Board office at 404-424-9966.
Step 4
Since January 1, 2026, the Board must approve you before you can schedule an exam. When Board staff make you eligible, PSI emails you the steps to register and choose a test date.
PSI's Georgia wastewater exams include Wastewater Treatment System Operator Class 1, 2, 3 and 4, Wastewater Collection System Operator, Industrial Wastewater and Wastewater Laboratory Analyst.
PSI Candidate Services at 833-256-1420 can help with your account and scheduling, but only the Board can make you eligible to test.
If you need an accommodation for a disability, send a written request with supporting documents to the Board's designated exam agent before the application deadline.
Step 5
Certificates expire on June 30 of odd-numbered years and are renewed every two years with a renewal application, a fee and a statement that you completed Board-approved continuing education. Your first renewal after you are certified needs no continuing education.
Each renewal needs 24 points for Class I, 18 for Class II, 12 for Class III and 6 for Class IV. Collection system operators need 12, and industrial operators and laboratory analysts 18. Class IV points must all come from courses approved for water or wastewater; for the other certificates, at least half must.
A classroom course or live webinar earns 1 point per contact hour, up to 6 points a day and 12 per event. Other online courses usually earn half a point per contact hour, up to 6 points. The same course counts only once per renewal period.
Keep proof of your continuing education for three years. You can still renew from July 1 to July 31 with a late penalty fee; a certificate not renewed by August 1 is treated as revoked and must be reinstated.
Moving up voids your lower certificate in the same category. If you hold more than one certificate, you renew each one but complete the points for the highest.
Exam day
You must pass a written exam to be certified. The rules say exams are offered at least six times a year, given by a designated agent of the Board. PSI gives Georgia's wastewater certification exams and sends your score directly to the Board.
At a PSI test center, arrive at least 30 minutes early with a valid, unexpired government photo ID. Only silent, battery-operated, non-programmable calculators without paper-tape printing or an alphabet keyboard are allowed.
Phones and other electronic devices are not allowed in PSI test centers, and personal items should be left elsewhere.
Operator Master's free practice questions, timed practice exam and math help are built on the WPI exam format and the WPI formula table. The Georgia pages we could read do not say whether Georgia's exams follow that format, how many questions they have, the passing score or which formula sheet you get, so use Operator Master for general wastewater knowledge and math, and ask the Board or PSI about your exam. Operator Master is an independent study tool, not the official exam.
Pay
The median pay for water and wastewater treatment plant and system operators in Georgia was $48,930 a year ($23.52 an hour) in 2025, compared with $60,020 nationally. One in ten earned $36,970 or less, and one in ten earned $67,520 or more.
These federal figures cover drinking water and wastewater operators together, at every class. Pay for a new operator is usually nearer the low end.
Moving up
These are Georgia's Biological Wastewater Treatment System Operator classes, from the entry class up. An associate or bachelor's degree in biology or chemistry shortens the experience for Class II and Class I. Each class also needs a passing exam score.
From another state
The Board may certify you without an exam if you hold a certificate in good standing from another state, territory or country whose requirements the Board considers substantially similar to Georgia's.
Apply for certification by endorsement on the Board's form with a non-refundable fee, proof of a high school diploma or GED, and a verification from the other program that your certificate is current and in good standing. If you do not meet these standards, you can apply the usual way.