According to the draft EIR, the two wells on the Caglia Ranch site can't pump enough water to keep the proposed 35-acre complex alive if natural turf is used. The report suggests constantly monitoring the water levels in the wells and reducing pumping as needed.

In times of drought, the report states, the water shortage could affect people living in the urban reserve who rely on well water by contributing to "problems with having adequate groundwater across the subbasin."

The report considers on-site water storage tanks, but argues that the additional aesthetic problems caused by a bulky tank make that solution untenable.

But the water shortage won't get in the way of construction, if the fields get an official go-ahead from the San Jose City Council.

The report proposes starting by planting five acres of grass--enough room for 21Ž2 soccer fields--and seeing what happens to the water levels in the wells.

Even though environmental lawyers also question the wisdom of the piecemeal approach, there's nothing to stop the city from going ahead with the sports complex, at least in the eyes of state law.

"If a project has a significant effect on the environment, the city is obligated to mitigate that effect if feasible," said attorney Jim Moose of Remy Thomas Moose and Manley, a law firm specializing in land-use and environmental law. "If it's not feasible, the city can approve the project anyway, but it has to adopt certain findings as 'overriding considerations.' "

The city would have to explain why the benefits of a sports complex for the Almaden Youth Association outweigh the negative water and pedestrian-safety impacts.

"The courts over the last 10 years have given lots of attention to water-supply issues. There are special rules for projects with 500 housing units or more," said Moose.

He referred to a case in 1996 in which the California 5th District Court of Appeals ruled that developers must prove they can supply enough water for a project before construction begins. South Almaden Valley Residents Association's attorney--the law firm of Shute, Mihaly and Weinberger-- won that 1996 case.

"With complete confidence, SMW says there is a rule that the idea of phasing in a project without a confirmed water source (whether at the initial phase-in stage, or at full build-out stage) is not allowable," said SAVRA president Nancy LaScola. "This is without a doubt not a concern for them of whether or not it can be done, because they're so confident that it definitely, without question, cannot be done. There's numerous cases that reflect this."

The latest draft EIR estimates the 35-acre complex would need 73 to 79 acre-feet of water per year, about as much as two to four homes would use. One acre-foot is 325,829 gallons of water.

That's much less than the 1,000 acre-feet of water used annually by 500 homes.

"If a project doesn't come under that 500-unit statute, nothing in the [California Environmental Quality Act] prohibits you from doing it if you make the right findings," said Moose.

"Even if you dry up your well or other people's wells, nothing in CEQA prohibits that. It may not be wise. It may be reckless. To do it may set yourself up for problems, and you may be beggaring your neighbors--but nothing in the law says you can't go ahead. That doesn't mean it's prudent."

The draft EIR mentions that some of the fields could be artificial turf, a feature that would cut the amount of water needed for the complex. But the report doesn't discuss the irrigation and drainage needed to support artificial turf.

Constructing an artificial-turf field involves laying irrigation pipes in a bed of material that allows water to drain, such as gravel or sand. The amount of detail an EIR needs to go into regarding alternatives to the proposed project, however, varies.

"It seems like an important issue to me, in this case," said Moose. "If a public agency wants to switch to an alternative [plan], they often conclude that they need to beef up the EIR. They realize they don't have enough meat on the bones. It's not absolute law, but in my experience that's what they usually do."

The purpose of the EIR, he explained, was to give decision-makers enough information to understand the consequences of their choices. If a housing developer decreased the number of planned homes, for example, from 1,000 to 800, a supplement to the EIR wouldn't be needed.

Price could also be an issue, as artificial fields cost twice as much as natural grass, according to a San Jose Unified School District report. The district began replacing its six high school football fields with artificial turf this summer. One synthetic football field--which is slightly smaller than a regulation-size soccer field--costs about $688,000.

The public can comment on the draft EIR for 30 days after its release. Once the report is approved, the community has an equally short time in which to challenge the EIR. SAVRA president Nancy LaScola said the group's lawyers and environmental experts are examining the report.

People living in the urban reserve are considered Santa Clara County residents. But they would still have a legal case against the city of San Jose if a city project damages their water supply. Attorney Nicole Tutt, who works at Nossaman Guthner Knox Elliot, said, "You don't lose your rights just because you aren't living within the city's jurisdiction."

If the project does end up in court, construction of the complex will be delayed until the lawsuit is settled.