I General Background

At some unknown time in mid-May, residents of and visitors to the village of Cold Spring Harbor (CSH) discovered that the spring water well located near the town’s boat loading ramp was no longer accessible. Members of the CSH Seafarers Boat Club, whose dock walkway sits between the spring’s natural outlet and the exit area of the water pipe where folks gathered their water, informed those who were seeking the water that the Town of Huntington (TOH) had cut the pipe. Some people, including this writer, tried to re-establish the connection, but the TOH again cut off the pipe.

The history of CSH and its springs goes back many centuries. It was always a water source for the local Indians and whalers preferred this water because it is so pure that it would safely last them for their long journeys out to sea. One of the senior members of the Jones family that gives Jones Beach it’s name, had property on the north shore and was a frequent user of the CSH area wells. It is said that this senior Jones family member declared that the well he owned should always remain available to the public. The fish pools of the CSH Fish Hatchery are, according to their website, continually flushed and recharged by water from the wells.

This particular spring well was tapped by the original founders of the Seafarers Boat Club somewhere around 1965. They sank a 60 foot pipe down into the heart of the spring, added some exterior piping, and used the water to clean their boats. They also put a line out towards the street side so folks could fill up their bottles and take home the water. In the ensuing 45 years, countless thousands of people have made this well their occasional, main or only source of drinking water, and there is no publicly known case of anyone getting sick from drinking it.

This well is not simply a source of water for the local population. People come from all parts of Long Island, Brooklyn, and Queens to taste and take home this water. In fact, the spring has an international reputation, and people have told this writer that when family members from overseas come to the New York area, they make it a point to visit CSH just to taste the water. If you spend any time at all by the well, you will see cyclists working the Route 25 grind, joggers and hikers coming down out the CSH State Park, tradesmen going to their jobs in the early morning, weekend strollers and sightseers, college students heading to their campuses in Nassau County, and even employees of the Cold Spring Labs, stopping by the well site to get a long cold drink of the great tasting water. Now they no longer bother to stop, they just keep moving on.

Anyone who inquired at Town Hall as to why the water was being cut off was told that wells of this type “…are unacceptable, as they are untested, unprotected and unregulated”. (1) Citizens who wanted to drink this water were told they could not have it. TOH Spokesman, A.J. Carter, told Rosey Mulderigg of the Village Tattler that “We have to react to the directive of the County Health Department”. (2) Suffolk County’s directive states that the “…water feature at the above referenced site should be permanently eliminated as a potential water source to ensure the protection of public health.” (3) This protection apparently stems from a test report performed by H2M Labs in Melville in early 2003 that found the presence of dichloropropane at levels that exceed federal and state standards for potable water. (4)

II The Health Issue

The closing of this spring by the Suffolk County Department of Health Services (SCDHS) rests upon assumptions. No test has been done since 2003. There appears to be no other backup to the H2M Labs report. Most importantly, despite the thousands of people who have been drinking this water, some for decades, no agency of the State of New York, Suffolk County, or the TOH can provide credible evidence that this water is unsafe, unhealthy, or a danger to the public.

During the process of collecting signatures for a petition to turn on the water, this writer had the chance to speak with over 400 people. These folks come from every demographic category and walk of life: rich, poor, young, elderly, black, white, Hispanic, Asian, men and women, professionals and tradesmen, laborers, students. When asked if they had ever gotten sick in any way from the water, the answer was, 100% of the time, no.

Now how can it be that all these people, over a period of 45 years, could be drinking this water with absolutely no negative effects? Has any health concern ever been so thoroughly put to the test as this well has been? Could any scientist develop a more perfect set of conditions in order to test something like drinking water?

Suffolk County Sanitary Code, Article 4, Section 760-423, specifically prohibits the use of natural springs as a source of drinking water. Is this to be interpreted as every well and every location in Suffolk County? By what reasoning and by what authority can the SCDHS declare that spring water everywhere and anywhere is unsafe when there isn’t even a program to test any of it?

There is no health issue that affects the public safety, and no on is forced to drink this water. The truth is that the SCDHS’s decision to close this well is arbitrary, unscientific, and totally without merit.

III The Environmental Aspect

Water issues will become a prominent area of controversy in this new 21st Century. The Long Island Sound, which is actually an estuary, is one of the most significant bodies of water in the world. The harbor at Cold Spring is an exceptional one. With our south shore fronting along the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island deals with a multitude of situations concerning water quality, and in many cases is a leader in such issues.

It is therefor, absolutely amazing that Suffolk County can declare that the natural wells and springs that are found all over L.I. are unprotected! These springs and wells should be aggressively protected from both chemical and organic pollutants. It is the sources of contamination that need to be identified and eliminated, not the wells. Their inherent beauty and value are things we should wish to preserve, not allow to deteriorate and become lost to future generations. If our public policy is to let these water sources disappear, then we need to totally re-evaluate such policies. Perhaps we could learn a lesson or two from the city of Saratoga Springs, where access to the spring water is not prohibited, but encouraged. There are actual water stations where folks can go to get some.

Besides the joy and beauty of drinking water that is naturally expelled by the earth, there is also the issue of security. Should a terrorist attack or some natural calamity occur, the availability of a ready supply of clean fresh water cannot be underestimated.

IV The Legalities

This writer is not a lawyer. However, when there are issues of concern that require legislation, such legislation should be done according to sound principles and common sense. Therefore, the question must be asked, how it is that Suffolk County can simply declare and demand obedience to its will without regards to the local governments it is supposed to be serving? The idea that power flows “down” from some larger and “superior” political entity to a smaller and “lower” one is entirely backward. When we speak about power, we should keep in mind that in America, power flows from the people to the government. It flows “down” to the government.

Local jurisdictions such as a township were created with the idea that such designations make for laws that more closely reflect the will of the people. In this case of the well at CSH, it is the expressed will of the people that they wish to access the water. It is not a question of whether the people are allowed to have this water at the whim of the government. It is a question of who tells who what to do. In this case, the people have spoken and it is the job of the government to figure out how to make the will of the people work.

The TOH therefore, should stand up to the bullying words and tactics of the county. The TOH should declare that it will serve its residents according to their preferences, not some dictates emanating from an office building far removed from the local scene. Government, and the people elected to serve in those offices of government, must in fact do exactly that, serve the people.

VI The Economics

The economic factors surrounding this issue are also important. Workers passing through, visitors, and tourists; all contribute to the local economy. They may shop, get something to eat, or purchase gasoline. In so many cases, the fact that some of these people even come to CSH is because of the well. It is known far beyond the local area and is popular with folks from Queens and Brooklyn who enjoy the opportunity to get away from the bustling, crowded boroughs and out in the fresh country air. The chance to drink real water from a living well adds to their enjoyment and is part of why they come. And when they come, they spend some money. Maybe not a fortune, but in these difficult economic times, why would we wish to discourage visitors?

V The People

The most important part of this entire discussion about the well at CSH concerns the people who drink the water, voluntarily, of their own free will. What is obvious in this story is the fact that the bureaucrats and politicians who have taken to themselves the authority to close down this well have absolutely no idea what they are doing. Have any of these people ever spent a day by the harbor? Have any of them brought along an empty bottle with which to get a drink from this well? Could any of them actually describe the area where the well is? Have any of them ever sat by the harbor, speaking with the fine folks who come there to enjoy all of the beauty?

This writer lives in the area and has been to the harbor many times. In the short time that this situation has become an issue, the writer has spent three consecutive weekends gathering signatures to a petition to the politicians to turn on the water. That endeavor has provided an opportunity to meet many of the wonderful people who come here to get water, and to hear their stories. It is something that the politicians should do in order to better understand the actions that they have taken.

Many local residents have literally been drinking this water all their lives. They will tell you how their parents used to bring them here as kids, and how they now bring their children to the well. The old-timers will talk about the old men of the sea who lived in this area and how they would share a drink of water with them when they were just young kids. And now the water is gone and the thread of life that ties generations one to the other has been torn asunder.

It is heartbreaking to watch as a car pulls up to the curb and the people get out with their bottles and containers, anxious, and full of joy at the prospect of bringing home some more of that wonderful water. Frequently, they do not even notice the sign and the table with the petitions. As they walk towards the location of the well, the look of happiness and joy turns into one of confusion. As they look around for the well that once gave them water, they then notice the sign and the petitions. The confusion turns into questioning as they approach the table and ask, where is the water?

Once they receive the official explanation, they then begin to ask why, why would anyone do this? The sadness that comes over many of these fine people is at times unnerving. They simply cannot believe that any decent person would do that to them. As one woman described it, they are just mean.

The children also experience this letdown. Although they haven’t been drinking this water for decades, they have come to enjoy the experience, putting their bottle under the pipe and letting it fill up. Then they take a cold drink and the smiles just keep on getting better. That is now gone.

Just as sad is the look on the faces of the cyclists, joggers, and hikers who, after a grueling workout, arrive at the well and find that the water is turned off, gone. You cannot imagine how disappointed they are, looking forward to that cold drink of water and then discovering that the politicians and bureaucrats arbitrarily decided that they can’t have the water. Other visitors too experience all of this. Long Island residents show up with family or friends, some from overseas, anxiously looking forward to sampling the great spring water they have heard about. Instead they find an emptiness, a void that cannot be replaced.

Some of the folks who come for the water get very angry. At such moments, it would probably not be wise for any politician responsible for this act to be in the vicinity. When these people start to speak about politics and the next election, you know that something is going on that is much deeper than the well and its water.

For all of these people, this totally arbitrary action to simply take something away from them without any justification, without the natural right and authority to do it, is devastating. The people feel powerless to stop their government from reaching deep into their souls and ripping away a part of their lives as if it means nothing.

On Sunday, June 13, there will be a rally at the site. The people will come with their signs and their hopes, and they will speak up and demand that the government they elected, the people they chose to represent them, restore to them their right to make their own choices as to how they will live their lives. They will not be there to ask for those rights. They will not be there to ask that the water be turned on. They will be there to demand it!

Turn On The Water

References:

(1) Letter from Douglas J. Feldman, Chief – Office of Water Resources at the SCDHS to Harry Acker,

TOH Director of Maritime Services, page 1, paragraph 2. A link to this letter is available in the article in reference (2).

(2) Article by Rosey Mulderigg in the Village Tattler, June 4, 2010

http://villagetattler.com/2010/06/04/who-took-the-spring-out-of-cold-spring-harbor/

(3) Same letter as above, page 2, paragraph 1

(3) Same letter as above, page 1, paragraph 3