Delta's pumps near normal - for now

Valley Press on ^ | Tuesday, July 10, 2007. | ALISHA SEMCHUCK

[BenLurkin]

Despite controversy over whether they are killing a rare species of fish, Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta pumps that help send Northern California water to Southern California are running at approximately normal capacity for this time of year - welcome news for the Antelope Valley water districts that supply the water to their customers. Equipment at the Harvey O. Banks Pumping Plant, the central artery of the State Water Project outside Tracy, has been sending roughly 12,000 acre-feet of water per day into the 444-mile California Aqueduct, said Don Strickland, a state Department of Water Resources public information officer.

An acre-foot equals about 326,000 gallons, or enough water to supply the average Antelope Valley household for one year.

That's good for the Antelope Valley-East Kern Water Agency, Palmdale Water District and Littlerock Creek Irrigation District.

"We're not looking at any reduced amount of allocation at this time," said Mike Flood, an engineer at AVEK, which supplies aqueduct water to farmers and to other water districts.

However, state water officials have been turning off the delta pumps at night to avoid killing more smelt, 2-inch-long fish protected by state and federal law that are the subject of a court battle about the State Water Project's effects on their numbers.

The fish seem to cluster near the pumps during the night hours, get sucked into the equipment and die, the Department of Water Resources spokesman said.

"We're not pumping at night. That's because we found we're taking more delta smelt at night - more smelt are being pulled into the pumps at night than in the day," Strickland said.

Judge Frank Roesch set a June 18 deadline to shut down the pumps, but that deadline has been postponed while state officials appeals the judge's decision.