A reader called, requesting a story to explain that the huge water pumps in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta are indeed running.

It may sound like a strange request, considering the pumps have been operating since late June, but this can be a very confusing discussion.

For months, the public has been bombarded with a simple political war cry from farmers and city officials who have suffered water cutbacks: "Turn on the pumps."

As I said, the federal and state water pumps -- which provide water for more than 20 million Californians and several milion cropland acres -- are on. This political war cry is more about timing of the cutbacks, not the actual real-time pumping right now.

The delta is a sensitive ecosystem with dwindling fish species, a damaged food chain, many pollution problems and federal wildlife protection rules. Following those rules, the pumps were slowed or shut down earlier in the year to protect fish species from being wiped out.

Irrigators lost part of their water supply at a critical moment. So they are still crying, "Turn on the pumps," but they are referring to a different time of year. They're trying to head off another cutback next year.

And if the state has a fourth year of drought, the cry will get much louder.