One would think that of all the things the "Waterland City" would be concerned with, water wouldn't be one of them.

But it is.

At a city council study session on Oct. 4, South King Fire and Rescue and Water District 54, which provides service within Des Moines, gave presentations on the need for major improvements to the water system.

Poor water flow and distribution in the city make it hard to fight fires now, and new development will make it more so in the future, lawmakers were told.

Both agencies have been working together for a couple months on a proposal for the council.

"The age of the [water] system is a big concern," South King Fire Marshall Ron Biesold said.

But construction on a system improvement project likely would cause major traffic problems for commuters along Marine View Drive.

And, said Councilwoman Carmen Scott, "I don't want to see a major construction on Marine View Drive."

Even so, construction could be unavoidable.

Larger downtown buildings that are being planned, primarily new condominiums, require a higher rate of gallons per minute (gpm) from city fire hydrants, Biesold noted.

Currently, the pressure is between 750 and 2,500 gpm. The rate needed for the fire department to effectively fight fires is 3,500 gpm.

A new "backbone" has been proposed by both the water district and the fire department that would replace old 6-inch piping in the downtown area with 12-inch pipe that would allow a higher output of water.

"Of all the districts we work with, the 54th is the only one we are concerned with," Biesold added.

South King Fire and Rescue also works with the Highline, New Haven and Tacoma water districts.

The system overhaul and upgrade would cost an estimated $2.5 million, according to estimates presented to the council.

Replacement piping would be located in specific areas, including South 216th Street, along Marine View Drive, and major streets east of Marine View Dr. such as South 223rd and South 227th.

New development in other areas not listed would require new piping at the expense of the developer, which would help complete the entire system over time.

"A new backbone system would have the capability of delivering 5,000 gpm," Biesold said.

Currently, when a fire is being fought, each hydrant in use can put out around 750 gpm depending on the area of the hydrant, he continued.

Factors such as elevation can change the gpm, depending on its location.

While the fire department needs 3,500 gpm to effectively fight fires, this can be achieved only by hooking up to four hydrants.

The only way to do this now is to connect to four separate hydrants at once, Biesold said. But "hooking up to four hydrants in just unfeasible. We need to get it down to two hydrants ... they are just too far apart" to make a four-hydrant connection practical.

A new "backbone" system would make 3,500 gpm available through two hydrants.

Many newer buildings in Des Moines have sprinkler systems installed to fight fires. However, most of the larger buildings were built in the 1970s before there was a fire code or improved sprinkler systems.

"The idea with sprinklers is that the fire is out before we get there," Biesold observed.

While sprinklers are effective, many larger stores don't have walls, which help contain fires and need to be fought from outside with resources such as hoses and hydrants, he said.

Lawmakers expressed concern that current water service would deter new development by requiring the developer to do too much and pay too much in an effort to make improvements to system-improvements some suggested is the city's job to make.

"It's the city's responsibility to provide the basic needs such as water supply for these developers," Councilman Dave Kaplan declared.

Kaplan is worried that making developers fill in the missing pieces of the "backbone" system would act as a deterrent to new development within Des Moines.

Other lawmakers said they felt left out of the planning for the new system and are eager to get involved.

"It appears that a lot of people have been involved but the council hasn't," Councilman Dan Sherman said. "We have been in the dark."

Water District 54 officials say that a merger with the Highline Water District, as many have suggested, would not be an immediate fix to the water distribution problem.

What's more, it would bring chlorinated water into its service area. Highline Water District uses chlorine; District 54 does not.

Biesold said that not using chlorine has resulted in the buildup of manganese in District 54 pipes, as much as a couple of inches thick in some places.

"The whole piping system needs to be replaced," Biesold said,

There is no estimate of what a whole new system would cost at this time.

Much of Des Moines' water piping is about 40 years old, and some of it is "mushy" to the touch because it is made of asbestos cement, which turns into a clay-like material when wet.

"We want something that we will be using 30 years from now," he emphasized.

Lawmakers will continue their discussion on the water system and options for upgrading it at meetings in the next few weeks.