Environment Survey, Part II

Wednesday, 12 July 2006 21:27 | Written by Graham Young

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On this morning's program we covered the following points:

1,243 respondents, 47% female, 52% male. Better spread now, but still biased towards those 51-60 (28%)
43% Greens, 19% Labor, 9% Liberal 5% Democrats and 4% National
More pessimistic than our earlier sample. 87% think world environment is getting worse, 85% think Australia is, and 64% think their local area is.
Looked at the balanced sample to find what issues respondents think are the most important, and what solutions they propose.
Internationally, most think that Global Warming is the biggest issue (36%), followed by Limited Resources (14%), Population (11%), Pollution (11%) and Degradation (11%). This puts a much heavier emphasis on Global Warming than when they are asked what is causing the world to head in the wrong direction. Suggests that to a certain extent they are reserving judgement on Global Warming until they see real evidence.
Nationally, Water comes into the lead (31%), then AGW (21%), Degradation (9%), and Pollution (7%). Limited numbers think we have a problem with limited resources (6%) and over-population is not seen as an issue (3%). This is counter to what international commentators like Jared Diamond have been saying â€“ that Australia is clapped out.
Locally, Water is still in the lead (26%), followed by Pollution, including litter and graffiti (11%), Degradation (10%) and Development 8%. Local issues are more likely to be practical. Motor vehicles and transport issues make an appearance.
Internationally, on the question of solutions, nothing stood out significantly with conservation measures being top (13%) followed by using alternative fuels (13%) and Education (10%). This suggests that respondents donâ€™t feel that the problems are really that pressing, and that responses are split between optimists, who think we can maintain standards of living and those who are pessimistic and think we canâ€™t.
Similar results at a national level. One additional element is that a significant number (11%) say that the government ought to be doing more. Kyoto is hardly mentioned at all (1%).
Locally the government also gets some of the blame. When you look closely at the solutions suggested at a local area they tend to also concentrate more on practical issues, as well as aesthetics, such as keeping things looking good.
Take-out â€“ Water is dominating our environmental fears, and this is because it is something that impinges on each of us most directly. We talk about the issues that environmentalists talk about but we care about those issues that affect us directly.

Verbatims

Global

"Hard to say - global warming immediately springs to mind, but the larger issue is sustainability and acheiving this will require seismic shifts in the world political order, which the US for one does not seem prepared to countenance. So it's not too long a bow to say that the United States is our biggest environmental problem." Male, 41-50, Labor

State

"The supply of good quality water for people and for agriculture so that food can be produced is not assured for any developing nation. The pressures on water supply are not mainly from the much-quoted climate change but from mismanagement, inadequate planning and wasteful use." Female, 51-60, Liberal

Local

"The complete lack of responsibility by the Beaudesert Shire council and its employees in managing environmental issues. They pay more attention to employing a dog catcher and checking the height of residents' fences than they do to environmental matters." Female, 51-60, Labor "Total destruction of our coastal wetlands because nobody knows its happening, media isnt interested, environmental groups are more interested in saving cape york and developers pay big electoral funding to all political parties. So it will just be replaced with a sea of brick and bitumen owned by investors from sydney and melbourne." Female, 51-60, Liberal, normally Greens

National One Thing

"Stop subsiding stupid, obscene 4WD while at the same time penailsing economy cars. Tax cars heavily according to their fuel consumpution. Stop subsidising petrol." Male, 31-40, Labor "Put a bounty on cane toads. When I was a kid, I use to get threepence for a sparrow, and a shilling for a starling, and ten bob for a pig snout. Bring back the bounty system and get rid of all the imported vermin brought in by misguiding people." Male, 61+, Liberal "Take control of environmental issues away from government departments and politicians and place it in the hands of specialists who know what they are doing" Female, 51-60, Greens (normally Labor)

Local One Thing

"Get rid of Ipswich's poor bus system, integrate it with Brisbane's bus system and hence the rail system, so that we could have a proper, workable, user-friendly public transport system that would reduce cars on the road." Female, 61+, Labor The full document, with the tables, can be downloaded by clicking here (pdf 32kb).

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Comments

0 #11 Comment — Ian BATTISSON 2006-08-30 20:11

Australia has past the point of responsible environmental impact. Let's cut the bull, become an insular country, honour our existing citizens, and, protect the future for our children. That is, a country who, (according to a UN spokesman some time ago), can feed the world does not need to import at all. We simply need to get the demand generated best price for exports.

0 #12 Comment — Anne 2006-09-21 02:12

Our environmental minister is undoing any good work that has been done over the years,this is why his described as being an agent for industry.The professors & oceanographers have
been ignored in regard to desalination,al l studies produced were backed up with evidence.Accord ing to government we have a shortage of water,land & qualified people.This is total rubbish,stop leasing rich farming land to companies to build mud lakes & contaminate. 15% of potable water is for households,the remainder is divided between agriculture horticulture and industry.Why are there so many qualified people unemployed,why are workers having to train the qualified people being bought to Australia?There are to many myths & unanswered questions.Is there a party that actually cares about country and people?