March 22, 2007

Abstract: (Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Most Canadian adults believe climate change is a reality, according to a poll by Angus Reid Strategies. 77 per cent of respondents are convinced that global warming is happening, 21 per cent think it may be occurring, and only two per cent flatly reject it.

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Most Canadian adults believe climate change is a reality, according to a poll by Angus Reid Strategies. 77 per cent of respondents are convinced that global warming is happening, 21 per cent think it may be occurring, and only two per cent flatly reject it.

In addition, 69 per cent of respondents think the science behind climate change estimates is real, while 12 per cent deem it as "junk" and 19 per cent are not sure.

The term global warming refers to an increase of the Earth's average temperature. Some theories say that climate change might be the result of human-generated carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. 47 per cent of respondents think global warming will significantly impact their own life and the life of future generations, while 42 per cent think it will not significantly impact their lives, but the lives of future generations.

In 1998, several countries agreed to the Kyoto Protocol, a proposed amendment to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The agreement commits nations to reduce their emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. Canada is one of more than 150 nations that have ratified the revised agreement, which came into effect in February 2005.

During his time in opposition, current prime minister and Conservative leader Stephen Harper criticized the inclusion of funds for the "fatally flawed" Kyoto Protocol in the federal budget. Harper took over as head of government in February 2006.

Earlier this week, the opposition Liberal party expressed disappointment with the allocation of funds for environmental projects in the federal budget. The official communiqué read: "(The budget) keeps tax breaks for new oil sands expansion in place until 2015 to help with their plan for explosive (...) There is no plan to make sure polluters pay for using the atmosphere as a free garbage dump. Without an overall plan for the environment, modest support for greener cars falls short."

Polling Data

The term "global warming" refers to a change in the earth's climate whereby the surface temperature increases over time. Where do you stand on global warming?

I'm convinced that global warming is occurring	77%
Global warming may be occurring, but I'm not convinced	21%
Global warming is not happening at all	2%

There has been a lot of discussion about the science behind global warming estimates. Generally, do you think this is real science of junk science?

Real Science	69%
Junk Science	12%
Not sure	19%

People have different views on the impact of global warming both now and in the future. What about the impact it may have on your life?

Global warming will significantly impact my life and the life of future generations	47%
Global warming will not significantly impact my life, but the life of future generations	42%
Global warming will exclusively impact the life of future generations	5%
Global warming will have no impact in my life or the life of future generations	3%
Not sure	3%

Source: Angus Reid Strategies
Methodology: Online interviews with 3,698 Canadian adults, conducted from Mar. 6 to Mar. 19, 2007. Margin of error is 1.6 per cent.

Complete Poll (PDF)

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