Scottish Government

Public Attitudes to the Environment in Scotland

CHAPTER TWO OVERVIEW OF ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES

This chapter focuses on levels of concern for a broad range of environmental issues amongst the public in Scotland. Following a comparison of results with those of the 1991 'Public Attitudes to the Environment in Scotland' survey ¹³, it explores the relationship between these concerns and selected socio-demographic characteristics. It then turns to look more closely at some key issues with local and global significance for the Scottish environment: climate change and flood risk, the location of waste, transport and energy generating facilities, views on water quality and, finally, perceptions of litter and dog fouling.

2.1 CONCERN ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES

Respondents were shown a list of 23 current environmental concerns and were asked how worried they felt about each issue. The full findings are shown in Table 2.1 ¹⁴. Almost half of those surveyed said that they were very worried about two issues - raw sewage put into the sea (49%) and nuclear waste (47%). A third of people were very worried about damage to the ozone layer (34%) and three in ten were very worried about pollution of rivers, lochs and seas (30%).

The next most prevalent concerns were protection of wildlife (28%), quality of drinking water (27%), and road traffic (27%). About a quarter of people said that they were very worried about the use of pesticides, fertilisers and chemical sprays (26%), waste disposal (25%), global warming by the greenhouse effect (25%) and genetically modified crops (24%).

Concern was lowest for farming methods or forestry (11% very worried), lack of access to parks (10% very worried and 23% not worried at all) and fish farming (just 7% very worried and 27% not worried at all).

The issue people knew least about was acid rain; around 7% of respondents reported that they either did not know how worried they were about it or had not heard of it before. Genetically modified crops and using up non-renewable resources were also issues which a larger proportion of people did not know about or had not heard of; 6% of people could not say how concerned they were about each of these issues.

Sample size for each row = 4,119

2.2 COMPARISON WITH OTHER SURVEYS

During the 1991 survey, respondents were asked to comment on how much they knew about each one of 22 environmental issues ¹⁵. In addition, they were asked how serious they felt each was for people in general, how personally affected they were by each one, and how worried they were about each issue. The 2002 survey repeated this final question using the same 22 environmental issues. One new issue was added to the list; 'genetically modified crops'.

Table 2.2 and Figure 2.1 compare the findings of the 2002 survey with those from 1991. Over the last decade, levels of concern have fallen for many of the issues and often quite dramatically. For example, as in 2002, the top ranked concern in 1991 was 'raw sewage put into the sea', but at that time 58% of people were very worried about this compared with 49% now. Concern for the 'pollution of rivers and lochs' has also fallen; nearly six in ten people were very worried about this in 1991 compared with three in ten in 2002 although it was still ranked as one of the top four issues in 2002. In terms of the priority attached to each of the issues, the four issues of most concern remained the same in 2002 as in 1991. However, over this period 'protection of wildlife' rose seven positions to become the 5 ^th highest ranked concern. With this ascent in the rankings, the proportion of people who were very worried about this issue only increased by 3% from 25% in 1991 to 28% in 2002 ¹⁶.

In the past decade, levels of concern for issues with international significance have declined. 'Global warming' and 'acid rain' have both fallen four positions to become the 9 ^th and 13 ^th equal ranked concerns respectively. The issue of 'fumes and smoke from factories' has fallen in significance from 7 ^th to 13 ^th position. In contrast, 'road traffic' and 'waste disposal' have each risen by two positions. 'New development in the countryside' has also risen two positions and the proportion of people who said they were very worried about this issue has risen by 9 percentage points to 15%. These findings show increased concern for environmental issues felt closer to home.

This is interesting given the results of DEFRA's 'Survey of Public Attitudes to Quality of Life and to the Environment - 2001' ¹⁷which also found that domestic issues were more concerning than international ones ¹⁸.

2.3 RELATIONSHIPS WITH SOCIO-DEMOGRAPHIC VARIABLES

In this section, levels of concern for environmental issues are analysed by the respondents' key socio-demographic characteristics, including highest educational qualification, tenure type and age.

In order to gain a better understanding of how patterns of environmental concern vary among different groups of people, the 23 environmental issues have been classified under six broader thematic headings. These are 'nuclear issues', 'international issues', 'pollution and water quality', 'protection of wildlife and conservation', 'fishing' and 'farming and forestry'.

2.3.1 Nuclear issues

Each respondent was asked how worried they personally felt about both 'nuclear waste' (2 ^nd highest ranked issue overall) and the 'generation of electricity by nuclear power' (15 ^th= ranked issue).

As Table 2.3 shows, concern for nuclear issues increased with age from 16 to 64 years then fell for those aged 65 and above. People living in rural areas were more likely to be very worried about both nuclear waste and the generation of electricity by nuclear power than those living in urban areas. For example, over half of those living in remote or accessible rural areas said they were very worried about nuclear waste (52% and 51% respectively), compared with 44% of people from large urban areas. Respondents who owned their homes or were private renters were more likely to say that they were very worried about nuclear waste than social renters (48% of owner occupiers and 49% of private renters said they were very worried about nuclear waste compared with 42% of social renters).

Concern for the generation of electricity by nuclear power was broadly similar for both men and women with around one in five of each group saying that they were very worried by it. Interestingly, the level of education attained was not notably related to views on either electricity generation by nuclear power or nuclear waste.

2.3.2 International issues

Respondents were asked how worried they were about a number of international environmental issues; 'damage to the ozone layer', 'global warming by the greenhouse effect' and 'acid rain'. Of these, damage to the ozone layer was the 3 ^rd highest ranking concern overall, while the others were equal 9 ^th and equal 13 ^th respectively (Table 2.2).

Men and women held similar levels of concern about global warming and acid rain, however, women were more likely to say that they were very worried about damage to the ozone layer than men (37% of women said they were very worried, while 31% of men said the same thing).

As with the nuclear issues, in general, concern for international issues increased with age, dropping off among the oldest age group. A smaller proportion of those aged 65 years or over said that they were very worried about global warming and acid rain than among other age groups. For example, two in ten of those in the oldest age group said that they were very worried about global warming, but over three in ten of those aged between 45 and 64 thought the same.

Those with degrees or professional qualifications were more likely to express concern about damage to the ozone layer or global warming than other groups although this was not the case for acid rain, where the proportions of those very worried were similar for all education groups.

[Table 2.4]

2.3.3 Pollution and water quality

The survey asked about concern over 'pollution of rivers, lochs and seas', 'raw sewage put into the sea', 'pesticides, fertilisers and chemical sprays' and 'quality of drinking water'. Concern for each of these issues was high among the public; every one was ranked within the top eight environmental issues presented by the survey and raw sewage was the top ranked concern overall.

As Table 2.5 shows, there were no noticeable differences over levels of concern for pollution of rivers, lochs and seas or the quality of drinking water between men and women. However, women were a little more likely to be very worried about both raw sewage and the use of pesticides, fertilisers and chemical sprays than men.

Concern about each of the pollution and water quality issues varied substantially with age increasing over the first three age groups and falling among those aged 65 and over. For example, only one in ten people in the youngest age group were very worried about the pesticide issue, compared to over one in three people aged between 45 and 64.

Owner occupiers were generally more concerned about each of these pollution and water quality related issues than private and social renters. Similarly, rural residents were more concerned than their urban counterparts about each of the pollution and water quality issues with the exception of the quality of drinking water. Those from accessible rural areas held the strongest views here; a quarter of large urban area dwellers (23%) said they were very concerned about pesticides, fertilisers and chemical sprays but over a third of people from accessible rural areas said the same thing (35%).

Concern for these issues did not vary much with levels of education attained although those with degrees or professional qualifications were more concerned about the use of pesticides than any other group and fewer people without qualifications were very worried about raw sewage put into the sea.

2.3.4 Protection of wildlife areas and conservation issues

Respondents were asked how worried they personally felt about the 'protection of wildlife', the 'protection of areas of conservation interest' and 'new development in the countryside'.

As can be seen in Table 2.6, women were more likely to be very worried than men over the protection of wildlife (30% women and 25% of men). However, virtually equal proportions of men and women said they were very worried about the protection of areas of conservation interest and new development in the countryside (around one in six people in each case).

There was some variation with age over concern for conservation areas and new development in the countryside. Concern rose with age up to the 45 to 64 age group and then decreased among those aged over 65 years. In contrast, levels of concern for the protection of wildlife did not vary significantly with age. Although a smaller proportion of those with no qualifications said they were very worried about these two issues, again this was not the case for the protection of wildlife, where the proportions of people saying they were very worried were broadly similar across each educational attainment group.

There was a strong rural-urban dimension to patterns of concern for each of these issues with those in rural areas seeming more concerned about each issue. In general, a greater proportion of those from accessible rural areas again held stronger views than other groups. Over a third of people from this group said they were very worried about the protection of wildlife (35%), and a quarter of people from large urban areas agreed (25%). Interestingly, although around a fifth of residents from accessible small towns and accessible rural areas were very worried about the protection of areas of conservation interest (19% and 22% respectively), fewer people in remote areas agreed (9% of those in remote small towns).

2.3.5 Fishing issues

Over the issues of 'fish farming' and 'overfishing' there were some noticeable variations by age, highest educational qualification, tenure type and urban or rural location. For example, those in the youngest age group were less concerned by both issues than other groups and concern was highest among those aged between 45 and 64 years for the issue of overfishing. A third of residents from remote rural areas (34%) said they were personally very worried by overfishing compared with 23% of those from accessible rural areas and 16% of people from large urban areas.

2.3.6 Farming and forestry issues

Respondents were asked how worried they were about each of the following land-based environmental issues; 'farming methods', 'forestry' and 'genetically modified crops'. Overall, forestry and farming methods represent two of the four lowest ranked concerns, while genetically modified crops was the 11 ^th highest ranking concern overall (Table 2.2).

As can be seen from Table 2.8, there was little difference in levels of concern for these issues between men and women, although women were a little more likely to say they were very worried about genetically modified crops than men (25% of women compared with 22% of men).

A greater proportion of those aged between 45 and 64 said that they were very worried about farming methods or genetically modified crops than any other group. Those in the youngest age group were least concerned about these two issues; for example, 13% of 16 to 24 year olds said they were very worried about genetically modified crops compared with 30% of 45-64 year olds.

Those holding a degree or professional qualification were more worried about farming methods than other groups. Over a quarter (27%) of those holding degrees or professional qualifications were very worried about GM crops compared with 20% of those with no educational qualifications. Although there were no distinct differences in levels of concern between urban and rural residents over either forestry or farming methods, rural residents were more concerned about genetically modified crops than their urban counterparts. A third of people from remote rural areas said they were very worried about this issue (33%) compared with a fifth of those from large urban areas (21%).

2.3.7 Attitudes towards woodland management

From Table 2.8 it is clear that there was little significant variation in attitudes between socio-demographic groups over the issue of forestry. Related to this environmental concern, respondents were presented with four methods of managing woodlands in Scotland and were asked to state the approach they thought should be most emphasised, and their second choice after that ¹⁹.

Table 2.9 demonstrates that, overall, the most popular management option was the 'conservation of existing woodland'. Three in ten people stated this was their preferred approach (28%) and a further three in ten (30%) selected this as their second choice. Support for the 'creation of mixed broad-leaved woodland, or mixed conifers and broad-leaves' and the 'creation of woodland using native species only' were similarly well supported. The 'creation of conifer woodland with introduced species' was the least favoured management approach; 5% named this is as the way which should be most emphasised and 8% gave it as their next choice.

The 'Scottish Forestry Strategy' ²⁰ sets out a framework for taking forestry in Scotland forward in the 21 ^st century and beyond, in ways that enjoy broad public support. Its overarching principle is that existing and future Scottish forests must be managed sustainably. Among the Strategy's aims are to develop more mixed forests, to extend and enhance native woodlands and to expand the area of well-designed productive forest (which could be made up of introduced tree species).

As with general levels of concern about forestry, there were no striking differences in woodland management preference by sex, age, highest educational qualification or tenure groups. However, as Table 2.10 shows, the 'creation of mixed broad-leaved forests or broad-leaved and coniferous forests' was more supported by those in remote rural areas than those living in urban areas. For example, over a third of respondents from accessible rural areas (36%) selected this, compared with 23% of residents from the large urban areas. Instead, urban dwellers were marginally more likely to support the creation of woodlands using native species than rural dwellers (27% of both large urban area and other urban respondents gave this as their first choice compared with 22% of people from accessible rural areas).