We've been covering the developments concerning the flooded residents of Wawarsing for some time, and throughout the process, it's been interesting to see how all the parties involved in the issue — from the residents themselves, to our elected officials in town government, to the New York City DEP — have been dealing with this.

To be sure, it's a tricky situation: what's causing the floods, for certain? How do we figure that out? Who's responsible in the meantime? How do the residents continue to live while under the constant threat of rising waters? And just who's going to pay for everything?

These are familiar questions by now, and as the story develops, answers have begun to emerge. At this past week's town board meeting, the board passed a resolution that got the ball rolling on providing drinkable and usable water to the flooded residents, many of whom have wells that were found to be contaminated with bacteria, rendering the water toxic. The $5,000 funding for the water comes from the DEP, and the water is coming from Leisure Time Spring Water, Inc. out of Kiamesha Lake, which is about twenty miles west of Wawarsing.

But there's one party involved in this situation that's been silent this whole time: the residents of New York City who have been enjoying the clean and clear water from the Rondout Reservoir for the last several decades, as the Delaware Aqueduct provides for roughly half of the city's drinking water.

And drink it they do. New York City is famous for its excellent tasting tap water — so excellent, in fact, that a new company called Tap'dNY has emerged that sells bottled New York City tap water to New York City residents.

Drink that in for a minute. How's it taste?

In an AP article concerning Tap'dNY, whose water is purified using reverse-osmosis, company founder Craig Zucker says his, "company is a for-profit business with a message — that water should be 'kept honest and local.' He says shipping water into New York from places like Fiji and France is an insult to the city. Zucker pays only his city water bill for his company's product."

What an interesting sentiment. Honest? Local? Insulting?

Perhaps someone should point out that the "local" water he's selling "locally" to his fellow Manhattanites has its origins in our region, and is being provided at a very, very high cost — the homes, property, and health of Wawarsing residents. There's nothing local or honest about this product…though insulting is certainly a term that seems to apply.

So we have a proposal for Mr. Zucker: send a few trucks' worth of Tap'dNY water to the people of Wawarsing, free of charge. After all, if you want to remain local and honest, shouldn't you honestly be providing the water to those who are local to its source? That's us. Not you. Not New York City.

If you're interested in our proposal to ask Mr. Zucker to put his money where his mouth is (which has been gulping our wonderful water, oops, I mean his "local" and "honest" product), you can find the company's website at tapdny.com. The company's phone number is 917-463-3537, and their e-mail is info@tapdny.com. Why not share your thoughts and express your feelings? You might want to let Zucker know that while he's bottling New York's wonderful water and selling it to New Yorkers, there are many of us who are feeling all wet.

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