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Americans Disappointed with Environmental Record
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(Angus Reid Global Scan) - Many adults in the United States believe their current federal administration is not doing enough to protect the environment, according to a poll by Gallup. 62 per cent of respondents think the U.S. government is doing too little on this subject, up seven points since 2004.
In 2004, the environmental policies initiated by the Bush administration included tax incentives totalling $4.1 billion U.S. to boost the use of energy-efficient technologies, including hybrid and fuel-cell vehicles. Bush has also proposed opening less than 10 per cent of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for oil exploration. According to the White House, the area could potentially provide more than one million barrels of oil each day.
In his Jan. 31 State of the Union address, U.S. president George W. Bush declared, "Keeping America competitive requires affordable energy. And here we have a serious problem: America is addicted to oil, which is often imported from unstable parts of the world. The best way to break this addiction is through technology. Since 2001, we have spent nearly $10 billion to develop cleaner, cheaper, and more reliable alternative energy sources—and we are on the threshold of incredible advances." 49 per cent of respondents believe the nation's environmental policies have remained the same under the Bush administration, while 43 per cent think they are being weakened.
Polling Data
Do you think the U.S. government is doing too much, too little, or about the right amount in terms of protecting the environment?
2006 | 2005 | 2004 | |
Too much | 4% | 5% | 5% |
About right | 33% | 34% | 37% |
Too little | 62% | 58% | 55% |
No opinion | 1% | 3% | 3% |
When it comes to environmental protection, which of these do you think is happening under the Bush administration?
2006 | 2005 | 2004 | |
The nation's environmental protection | 5% | 5% | 6% |
The nation's environmental policies are | 49% | 52% | 53% |
The nation's environmental protection | 43% | 40% | 39% |
No opinion | 3% | 3% | 2% |
Source: Gallup
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 498 American adults (First Question) and 502 American adults (Second Question), conducted from Mar. 13 to Mar. 16, 2006. Margin of error is 5 per cent.