TINY—Pumps wreak havoc on the Delta smelt. Water concerns are nothing new for Southern California residents. But the reason behind the decline in the amount of water available to Ventura County users for the next 12 months is new.

A series of recent judicial decisions protecting fish species in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta has put time restrictions on the pumps that move water from Northern California reservoirs to State Water Project customers in the south.

Despite a substantial increase in water levels created by a series of late-season storms and an improved snowpack in the Sierras, the cutback in pump operations is causing a trickle-down effect in the supply of water.

According to the Department of Water Resources, the result of the fishery restrictions is that the State Water Project will reduce the amount of water provided for the 2010-11 fiscal year by an estimated 800,000 acre-feet. That means local water providers, including the Calleguas Municipal Water District, will receive just 50 percent of their requested amount.

While last year’s cutbacks were caused by nature, this year’s drought has been mandated by the law.

“It’s the first year of a true regulatory drought. It’s the first time in history. It’s good for people to know that,” said Eric Bergh, Calleguas’ acting general manager. “Last year was due to hydrological drought. This year it’s exclusive simply because of the regulatory nature of the pump restrictions.”

At the crux of the issue is the Delta smelt, a tiny, finger-length fish whose population numbers in the Delta waters indicate whether other species, including a variety of salmon, are at healthy levels. In an effort to reach and maintain healthy levels, regulations have been put in place regarding the use of the Delta water pumps during the October-through-June breeding seasons.

The regulations leave the hot summer months—when water demand is at its peak and pipelines are already being used near capacity—as the only time when the pumps can operate at higher flows. That means the extra water resulting from the spring storm season cannot make its way south.

“It would be nice to be able to use that water in the years that we’ve got it,” said Mark Watkins, director of public works for the city of Thousand Oaks.

“There’s certainly a level of frustration among all purveyors. You look at it and say there’s plenty of water flowing right now. Why can’t we put it to its best use?”

While the argument regarding best use continues to play out in courtrooms, local communities are grappling with how to make sure their water needs are met.

The consensus appears to be a two-pronged approach: Find new ways to move water around the Delta—either through new underground pipelines or an above-ground canal—and make use of the brackish groundwater that sits beneath much of Ventura County.

“Every (water purveyor) is looking into how to reduce dependence on imported water,” said Reddy Pakala, director of Ventura County’s water department, which services Moorpark. “That, I think, is our long-term solution for this problem.”

The short-term solution is to ask residents to remain cognizant of the drought and to continue to employ reduction measures to make sure there is enough water to go around.

“Our emphasis has been much more on the how to reduce water use rather than why are we here,” said Joe Deakin, assistant director of public works for the city of Simi Valley.

“We (local cities) need to continue those strong team efforts that we started building, and continue that through another year.”