It's still the water

ARTESIAN WELLS: People come from all around to get the special water that bubbles up in a parking lot.

By Lewis Taylor, The Olympian

It's the water that's bringing the Olympia community together for a common cause that includes an uncommon list of supporters.

Local residents, business owners, regulators, lawyers, politicians, and now musicians, are joining together to help preserve Olympia's free-flowing Fourth Avenue artesian well.

"Good water, there's nothing like it," said Scott Weiskopf, mandolinist and guitarist with the Seattle-based band Odd Men Out. The bluegrass-influenced funk duo is scheduled to perform at the Fishbowl Pub Saturday in a benefit for the Friends of Artesians, a nonprofit group dedicated to the preservation of Olympia's artesian wells.

"It's something that bubbles out of the ground right by my business, and I said here's a nonprofit group we can help," said Mary Horton, founder and director of the Fish Brewing Co. Horton said she enjoys the taste of the additive-free water and viewed the benefit as an opportunity to give back to the community.

Horton hopes to raise money for a fund set up by the Friends of Artesians. The money will aid efforts to build a small park and new cistern for the well, which is now little more than a bent pipe occupying three parking spaces in the Diamond parking lot. A series of plywood sheets covers unsightly holes in the pavement, and several temporary murals painted by high-school students lay haphazardly on their sides against a nearby wall.

So far $5,000 has been raised for the fund, and Friends of Artesians hopes to gather an additional $45,000.

"Our most important goal now is funding," said Dr. Jim Ingersoll, a co-founder of the nonprofit group, who hopes to begin construction on the park by summer. "We need the money to build the park and to fund the organization that will service the park for all the generations to come for perpetuity."

Fish Brewing Co. is the latest business in a long string of local merchants and residents who have donated money or services that have included parking spaces, carpentry, paving services, photography, videography, engineering, legal services, scientific research, artistic skills, drafting skills and, most recently, an offer to create a Web site.

While some are surprised by the outpouring of support, Ingersoll is not.

"This has been my mission from the beginning to bring the community together," Ingersoll said.

Ingersoll credits the success of his organization to thorough scientific research. Much of the work was done by Nadine Romero, a former hydrogeologist with the state's Ecology department, who donated 200 hours of her time to the cause.

Romero estimated the Fourth Avenue well to be more than 35,000 years old and described it as one of the oldest wells in the area. She said Olympia is unique in that the area is a discharge zone for ground water, where wells are constantly being refurbished and are less likely to dry up. She estimated the water in the Fourth Avenue well to be 35 to 50 years old, and placed the depth of the well at a relatively deep 91 feet. After conducting extensive tests, Romero concluded that the well was sound and that the water was safe to drink.

"It's high in manganese, which is its unique drinking water standard," Romero said. "Too much of it may stain your clothes, but people love it."

Romero, who drinks the water herself, discounted concerns that the well might become contaminated by the overlying fill that makes up much of downtown Olympia. The extreme depth of the well and the thick layer of overlying clay should shield the well, she explained, while stressing that regular testing should be conducted to ensure continued safety.

Safety was not a concern for most visitors to the well on a recent afternoon. Most of those who came believed that the untreated spring water was healthier than tap water, and some professed a spiritual component to their belief in spring water.

"I practice Native American spirituality, and keeping in line with some of the old prophecies is a belief that it's going to be harder and harder to find water," said Bill Cote, a Seattle resident who came to Olympia to visit a friend and fill several gallon jugs with spring water. Cote said the water also helped his wife's allergies.

The Fourth Avenue well is not the only artesian spring in Olympia. According to Friends of the Artesians there are at least 100 other wells in the area, and Olympia has long relied on such wells for drinking water. The Olympia Brewery is supplied by 26 wells, which serve as the source of its slogan.

Lewis Taylor writes about entertainment and lifestyles for The Olympian. He can be reached at 754-5406.