Dec 1, 2006

Americans will start just throwing money at global warming


MIT survey on global warming
Just in case you didn't notice that US opinion has shifted sharply in recent months, a new survey from MIT shows that global warming jumped from 6th in 2003 to 1st in 2006 among significant environmental challenges cited by Americans (via the watt).
Almost half the respondents put global warming in first or second place. In 2003, the destruction of ecosystems, water pollution, and toxic waste were far higher priorities.
There is also an increased sense that global warming is an established problem, as almost 70 percent of respondents agreed that there's enough evidence to warrant some level of action– up from 50% three years ago.
The other big change is a substantial increase in people's willingness to spend their own money to do something about it. In 2003, people were willing to pay on average $14 more per month on their electricity bill to "solve" global warming. In 2006 they agreed to pay $21 more per month—a 50 percent increase in their willingness to