Yale Study Reports Renewed Concern with Global Warming

- By Erin Bourgault, CTLCV Summer Intern from Bates College. erin.bourgault@ctlcv.org

Anthony Leiserowitz, Ph.D., Director of the Yale Project on Climate Change and Research Scientist at Yale’s School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, recently released results from a national survey of Americans’ climate change and energy beliefs, attitudes, policy support, and behaviors.

After strong support for climate and energy policies in November 2008, reports showed that both support for energy policies and beliefs in global warming decreased in January 2010. However, the June 2010 survey results should give us hope as public concern about global warming and support of energy and climate policies seem to be increasing again.

The report on Americans’ support and opposition to energy and climate change policies includes measures of support for specific policies, as well as the differences in political parties, and how public support has changed since previous surveys conducted in January 2010 and November 2008. Highlights include:

-87 % support funding more research into renewable energy sources (+2)

-65 %support signing an international treaty that requires the United States to cut its emissions of carbon dioxide 90 percent by the year 2050 (+4)

-77 %support regulating carbon dioxide as a pollutant (+6)

- Conversely, support for expanding offshore drilling for oil and natural gas off the U.S. coast fell 5 points, to 62 %.

Since the January 2010 report, the belief that global warming is happening rose four points, to 61%. Further, 50% of Americans believe that human activities are the main cause of global warming, rising three points. The June 2010 survey revealed that 53% of Americans worry about global warming, rising three points. The number of Americans who said that global warming is personally important to them is 63%, a five point increase from January, 2010.

With the Yale Project on Climate Change, Leiserowitz conducted the surveys from May 14 to June 1, 2010, with a nationally representative sample of 1,024 adults. The two reports are entitled “Americans’ Global Warming Beliefs and Attitudes in June, 2010” and “Public Support for Climate & Energy Policies in June, 2010.”

Although the number of Americans who believe in global warming and support climate action is rising, the survey shows that Americans generally are not ready to make global warming a priority. While supporting climate and energy legislation and acknowledging that global warming is human-induced are significant strides in the right direction, it is not enough.

Today is day 78 of the horrific BP oil spill; as much as 60,000 barrels of oil a day flow into the Gulf of Mexico. Now is the time for Americans to step up and change their everyday lifestyles in order to invest in renewable energy and combat global warming.