The main motivation for an environmentally friendly lifestyle is guilt about harming the environment, reveals a new report published by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).
The survey, 2007 Attitudes and Behaviour Toward the Environment, carried out by the British Market Research Bureau (BMRB), polled 3,600 people in England on topics including general attitudes toward the environment, energy, water efficiency, and recycling.
When asked about waste, 87% said they give away things they no longer want to charity shops or friends and family, and 78% said they sometimes reuse empty bottles, jars, envelopes and paper. All I can say here to this is “let's hope that they answered truthfully”. Many people, let's face it, when presented with such questions in a survey, especially if conducted by pollsters in person, will answer what they think the people want to hear.
"The most encouraging finding in this survey”, said Environment Minister, Joan Ruddock, “is that the majority of the people believe that it is up to individuals to accept responsibility by making lifestyle changes,".
"This is vitally important as 40% of climate change emissions come from our actions as individuals."
So we are being told. I mean the story that 40% of climate change emissions come from our actions as individuals. What if whatever we do does not have all that much to do with climate change at all and while I certainly agree that we have lots to answer for – such as the destruction of the word's forests, the pollution of rivers, lakes, and seas, the overfishing of our oceans, and other such things – and we must reduce our overuse of resources, which will mean reusing and recycling, and such, and our impact on th environment per se, we must also prepare for the possibility that climate change is not man-made and that it is a natural phenomenon, which it indeed is.
If there is just the slightest chance that we cannot stop it then we must prepare on two levels, namely we must reduce our impact on the environment by acting more Earth-friendly but we must also, at the same time, make preparations for the possibility that we cannot and would never ever have had the chance, to avert climate change.
To all intents and purposes it does appear as if the Earth has gone through warning periods about every thousand years and also cooling periods have followed a similar pattern. What we are seeing could be the return of just one of those natural warming periods and if that is the case than, although we must use this as an opportunity to reduce our environmental impact, we cannot stop it and will have to prepare to live with it.
According to the report, half the respondents said they never leave lights on and 72% said they have invested in energy-saving light bulbs over the last 5 years.
Yes, right, and on an airfield nearby a squadron of pigs is preparing for take-off. While I may believe those people that they may have bought an energy-saving light bulb or two, the claim of over half of them asked that they never – read it – never – leave the lights one I just do no buy. How about the standby modes on their TV, PCs, etc.? As said above; they answered what they thought the interviewers wanted to hear. Those that said they left lights on, etc. are the ones who have been the real honest ones, in my opinion.
It will still take a long road before the people, in general, will accept to make changes and there is only one way to get people to make changes. What is that way? Well, it certainly is not taxing them if they don't. Incentives must be provided for people to reuse and recycle, to use alternative energy and low-energy lights, etc.
Let us start with recycling here. Why is the UK not paying those that bring aluminum cans to the recycling centers as it is done in, for instance, the United States? I know the answer is simple to this; it has to do with profits. The less you have to pay out the more you make. Greed even in the business of saving the environment. However, if an incentive was there, as it used to be with the deposit on glass bottles, the cans would soon no longer clutter up countryside and litter bins. Many child in the 60's and 70's of the last century made good pocket money from collecting the Coca Cola bottles and others that people could not be bothered to take back. I certainly did as a boy.
The survey also covered modes of transport for getting to work, school or college, or going shopping.
Overall, for journeys of one mile or less 45% said they drove, 6% said they took public transport and 46% said that they walked or cycled.
For journeys of three miles or less 58% said they drove, 9% took public transport and 28% said that they walked or cycled.
All those cyclists must be invisible for I sure am not seeing them anywhere. I do see the car parks at the local supermarkets, however, full to the brim. The cycle stands, however, are mostly empty. Does that speak volumes or not? It just proves how valuable such surveys are.
The poll is the sixth in a series of surveys that Defra and its predecessors have conducted into attitudes towards the environment since 1986.
"Government is determined to make it possible for people to choose greener lifestyles and to provide advice and encouragement through our Act on CO2 Campaign", Environment Minister, Joan Ruddock, said.
Michael Smith (Veshengro), December 2007
Being 'green' is now a socially acceptable norm
