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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Background and objectives
1. The Environment and Rural Affairs Department of the Scottish Executive commissioned a module of questions in the April/May 2006 wave of IpsosMORI's Scottish Social Policy Monitor. It should be noted that the interviewing period was in the spring before the relatively dry summer, and prior to much of the media attention regarding various aspects of the water environment in England and in continental Europe.
2. The overall aim of the research was to inform policy in relation to the Water Environment and Water Services (Scotland) Act 2003. This Act implemented the EC Water Framework Directive ( WFD), and establishes for the first time a source-to-sea planning framework for river basin management. The WFD is one of the first European regulations to explicitly demand a high degree of involvement from the public in its implementation.
3. The main objectives of the research were to gather information about how people in Scotland perceive, understand and value the water environment in terms of:
- the personal, social and economic importance of the water environment
- the use of the water environment for leisure and recreation
- perceptions of the quality of the water environment and priorities for improvements
- understanding of the threats to the quality of the water environment
- the future of the water environment.
4. The Scottish Social Policy Monitor is a multi-client, face-to-face survey carried out among a random sample of adults across Scotland. Interviews are conducted using Computer Assisted Personal Interviewing ( CAPI). The April/May 2006 wave involved interviews with 1,011 adults.
Key findings
The importance of the water environment compared to other environmental issues
5. People appear to be less concerned about, or aware of the impacts of, their own behaviour in relation to the water environment than their actions in relation to other environmental issues.
6. Reducing our contribution to climate change/global warming, addressing how to meet our energy needs, and increasing the levels of recycling were considered the three most important environmental issues facing Scotland. In comparison, ensuring that the water in our rivers and lochs is of a high quality was ranked fourth equal in terms of importance with reducing the amount of waste going to landfill, while reducing the risk of flooding was considered the least important of the eight issues asked about.
7. The public are significantly less concerned about saving water than they are about recycling or using less energy.
Importance of the water environment to Scottish life
8. The water environment is, however, considered important to people's quality of life. Around half of respondents said that it was very important, and around a third said that it was quite important. Only 7% said that it was not important.
9. Drinking water and health were the two most commonly given reasons as to why the water environment is important. These were mentioned by around half of all respondents. Nature/wildlife was the third most commonly given reason (26%). Other than tourism and fishing, few cited economic issues.
Perceptions of water quality
10. People's perception of the quality of the water environment in Scotland is generally very positive. Three-quarters of respondents said that the water environment in Scotland overall is either very good or quite good. Only 6% said that it was poor.
11. Similarly, around seven in ten considered the water environment in their local area to be either very good or quite good. Around one in seven said that it was poor.
12. The highest priority for improvement among respondents was the quality of coastal waters near urban areas, followed by avoiding the risk of flooding to properties and avoiding damage to wildlife habitats cause by engineering works like altering river banks or loch beds.
13. The lowest priorities for improvement among the public were ensuring a reliable water supply for homes; the quality of water in lochs, rivers and streams in rural areas (which was generally regarded as being good); and ensuring a reliable water supply for industry all year round.
Threats to the water environment
14. Pollution and sewage are seen as the biggest threats to the water environment in Scotland. Eighty-one per cent said that pollution by the general public was either a large problem or something of a problem, 73% said likewise about industrial pollution, and 65% said likewise about pollution from farming. Sewage was also considered a large problem or something of problem by the majority of respondents (63%).
15. Fewer people offered an opinion as to the potential threat to the water environment by engineering works than other potential threats to the water environment, but this may suggest, as might be expected, that they are less confident in their knowledge of the threat posed by engineering works.
16. The majority of people in Scotland (58%) do not consider serious water shortages likely in the next few years. Less than a third (28%) said that shortages were likely. The most commonly given reason as to why water shortages were likely was climate change/global warming.
17. Most people (72%) said that in the next five years or so, they expect the water environment in their area to stay much the same. Slightly more people said that they expect the water environment to get better (16%) than said it would get worse (9%).
Challenges
18. In summary, the public think that the water environment is important but that it is generally of good quality and is likely to stay that way. Indeed, it appears that people are less concerned or aware of about issues relating to the water environment than they are about other environmental topics. The findings of this survey suggest that there are certain challenges to engaging the general public in the management of the water environment; to persuade them of the need for stricter controls and investment to improve its quality, and that it may be difficult to implement strategies aimed at reducing the demand for water.
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