33. San Antonio, TX

In San Antonio you may find a scenic Riverwalk that runs through the heart of downtown, a great basketball team, and plenty of historic buildings (remember the Alamo ?). One thing you won’t find, though? A USDA certified farmer’s market. Local food isn’t quite San Antonio ’s strong suit. Using water wisely, on the other hand, most definitely is. The city relies on groundwater from the Edwards Aquifer, which is replenished by rainwater. Although the city had only six inches of rain in 2007, it never went into emergency conservation mode. One area that does need attention, however, is implementing a policy to control urban sprawl. City Environmental Policy Director Lawrence Doxsey says there is no urban growth boundary to help curtail expansion. San Antonio ranks number one in housing affordability, and Doxsey says that more and more houses are being built despite the nation’s lagging economy. In SustainLane’s 2006 survey, green building was the city’s lowest scoring area. The good news is that it has since adopted a green building resolution mandating that all new city facilities achieve LEED silver status.

View down the famed San Antonio' Riverwalk (Photo by Urban)