The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
A new Canada West Foundation survey finds that almost eight in 10 western Canadians believe climate change to be a serious problem. They not only see climate change as a serious problem, but also consider reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to be a top priority. But are they willing to make changes to reduce GHG emissions? The answer is Òsort ofÓ Ð depending on the degree to which the change will affect their lifestyles and their pocketbooks. Western Canadians are extremely supportive of government subsidies for renewable energy production. They are quite willing to change many habits in an effort to reduce GHG emissions. The most popular action Ð by a large margin Ð is increasing home energy efficiency. But enthusiasm drops sharply when they are asked about user-pay options, with the majority unwilling to pay significantly more for gasoline and for home heating. While western Canadians are concerned about climate change and willing to take steps to reduce GHG emissions, protecting the economy remains the priority for many: Almost six in 10 western Canadians feel that efforts to reduce GHG emissions should not be made at the expense of the economy. The survey results suggest that the public would be highly supportive of incentive programs for increasing home energy efficiency, and for reducing car travel by carpooling, walking or biking, or using public transit for more trips. The findings also suggest that the public would be supportive of government investments in public transit systems, and in alternative energy production. But what about the more challenging issues such as carbon taxes or hard caps on emissions that will hit Canadians in their pocketbooks one way or another? While the survey finds greater opposition than support to increased gasoline and energy prices, the slimness of the opposition is remarkable. It is also striking that almost four in 10 feel that significant efforts to reduce emissions should be made even if doing so will hurt the economy. If Canadian political leaders were to focus on the potential economic opportunities in developing new technologies to address climate change, concerns about impacts on the economy might diminish somewhat. It is no surprise that the popularity of addressing climate change drops when doing so is linked to economic distress and less money in our wallets. What is surprising is how many are willing to at least consider accepting these costs.
