Tracy Press

Friant Dam near Fresno is shown in 2006. It and other reservoirs in the state are below their normal average, which, combined with a court ruling, could mean less water for Central Valley consumers. Press file photo

Despite statistics from the state Department of Water Resources indicating that the state’s snowpack is near average for this time of year, a Wednesday press release warned water deliveries will still be far short of normal. And a court ruling, a dry winter and systemic problems are taking the blame.

What that means to water users in the Bay Area, Central Valley and Southern California is that the amount of water pumped their way will likely be reduced to 35 percent of normal.

That curtailment is mostly because of a 2007 decision by Judge Oliver Wanger that ruled protections for the endangered Delta smelt — a fish that is often seen as a bellwether of Delta health — were inadequate. But even if that limitation were not in place, said DWR information officer Ted Thomas, water exports would still be far below normal.

“So we’re at 35 percent (of normal water distribution) now, and without (Wanger’s) decision we would be probably at 50 percent or a little above 50 percent,” he said.

The exceptionally dry winter of 2006-07 has left Sierra reservoirs at a statewide average of 85 percent of the year-to-date average, according to Thomas, which means a snowpack that would normally be adequate will still leave the state short on water.

Both the department of water resources and the governor have urged conservation. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has set a goal of reducing California’s per-capita water consumption 20 percent by 2020.

“We always preach conservation as to all of the water agencies,” Thomas said.

But that isn’t the only solution being pitched by the governor’s office.

DWR director Lester Snow took the opportunity of Wednesday’s press release to plug Schwarzenegger’s effort to research a comprehensive water plan for the state, which includes, among other possibilities, a controversial canal that would transport water around much of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta straight to federal and state pumps outside Tracy.

“We must move ahead on the comprehensive plan outlined by Gov. Schwarzenegger to invest in our water systems, restore the Delta and ensure clean, safe and reliable water supplies,” Snow said in the press release.

Thomas also said the problems run deeper than a dry winter or a small fish. A wet April could save the state’s fortunes this year, but water troubles will persist if basic issues concerning how the state collects and allocates water are not fixed.