The Scottish Government

This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007

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Survey on Environmental Attitudes

29/11/2002

SURVEY OF PUBLIC IN 2002 HIGHLIGHTS ATTITUDES AND BEHAVIOURS TOWARDS THE ENVIRONMENT IN SCOTLAND

The main findings of the "Survey of Public Attitudes to the Environment in Scotland" are released today by the Executive.

This site includes copies of the questionnaires used in the survey and frequency counts summarising the responses to each question in the survey. The frequency counts can be downloaded, in Excel format.

The Environmental Attitudes Survey, a National Statistics Publication, was commissioned by the Executive, in conjunction with Scottish Natural Heritage and the Forestry Commission to provide information on public views on a wide range of environmental issues.

A representative sample of over 4,000 people throughout Scotland was surveyed between February and June 2002.

Some of the key findings include:

Concern about environmental issues

• 49% of respondents said they were very worried about 'raw sewage put into the sea'
• 47% said they were very worried about 'nuclear waste'
• 34% said they were very worried about 'damage to the ozone layer'
• 30% said they were very worried about 'pollution of rivers, lochs and seas'
• 28% were very worried about 'protection of wildlife'
• Levels of concerns about many of the highest ranked environmental issues declined between the previous survey in 1991 and 2002
• 'Raw sewage put into the sea' - from 58% very worried in 1991 to 49% in 2002
• 'Pollution of rivers, lochs and seas' - from 57% to 30%
• 'Fumes and smoke from factories' - from 40% to 20%
• For some issues concern increased over the last decade
• 'New developments in the countryside' - from 6% very worried in 1991 to 15% in 2002

Quality of drinking water

• 76% of respondents were very satisfied or satisfied with their tap water; 15% were dissatisfied or very dissatisfied
• 26% of those responding said they usually drink bottled water at home and 3% that they normally drink filtered water. When away from home 53% said that tend not to drink tap water

Wildlife protection

• 4% of respondents thought wildlife and habitats were well protected. A further 55% thought they were quite well protected
• When respondents were asked to name up to three greatest threats to wildlife and habitats, 54% identified new developments and roads being built in the countryside with a similar percentage identifying industrial pollution

Litter and dog fouling

• 89% of respondents considered litter to be a very big problem or quite a big problem. 69% thought the problem of litter had got worse over the past 5 years, against 5% who thought it was now less of a problem
• 79% felt that dog fouling is a big problem. Fines were considered a good way to reduce dog fouling by 73% of respondents. Other solutions people thought would help included more bins for dog fouling (53%), educating dog owners on the problems of dog fouling (51%) and providing special areas for dog walking (47%).

Waste and recycling

• 48% of those surveyed recycled some or all their glass and 39% recycled some or all of their paper. With a door-step collection service, 88% of those surveyed said they would recycle paper and 85% said they would recycle glass. 6% said they would not recycle anything if it was collected from them

Sustainable development

• 77% of respondents agreed that 'most people in Scotland today need to change their way of life so that future generations can continue to enjoy a good quality of life and environment'. 46% agreed that they personally need to change their way of life.

Climate change and flooding

• 62% of respondents said the world's climate is definitely changing and a further 26% believed it probably is
• Of those who believed the climate is definitely or probably changing, 55% thought it would be wetter in future as against 6% who thought it would be drier
• 35% thought it would be hotter in future against 19% who thought it would be colder. 42% of respondents thought that the weather would be less predictable in the future

Energy generation

• Compared with the 10% of Scotland's electricity that is currently generated from renewable sources, respondents indicated that they would prefer over half of Scotland's electricity to be generated from renewable sources.