GREEN ALERT: SCOTS’ CLIMATE CRISIS FEAR
Majority of people in all age groups say saving the environment should be government priority
THE vast majority of people in Scotland see climate change as an “immediate and urgent” problem, according to a Scottish Government survey.
Seven out of 10 adults questioned believe the environment is at crisis point, compared with less than half five years earlier.
The findings were included in the Scotland’s People Annual Report, which canvassed around 10,000 people’s views on subjects from education to the economy.
For the first time, a majority of all three age groups surveyed view climate change as a priority.
Only three per cent thought it was “not a problem”. The results come as a global movement demands rapid action against global warming, with many inspired by Greta Thunberg’s “school strike for climate” protest in Sweden.
Wild fires are raging in California eight months after devastating blazes ravaged parts of Australia.
Scottish Green Party co-leader Patrick Harvie said: “It’s time for the Scottish Government to stop tinkering at the edges and finally deliver an emergency response.
“We’ve shown how climate action can support hundreds of thousands of jobs, deliver a fair transition for those currently working in fossil fuels industries and make our villages, towns and cities healthier places to live. All that’s missing is government will.
“Now that the government knows it has the public behind it, it no longer any excuses for inaction.”
The Scotland’s People Annual Report – also known as the Scottish Household Survey – compared attitudes in 2019 with results going back to 2013.
It found: “There has been a steady increase in the proportion of adults viewing climate change as an immediate and urgent problem, from 46 per cent in 2013 to 68 per cent in 2019.
“The largest increase is among 16 to 24-year-olds, increasing from 38 per cent in 2013 to 69 per cent in 2019.”
Harvie added: “In 2019, for the first time, the majority of each group viewed climate change as an immediate and urgent problem.
“It’s time for the Scottish Government to stop tinkering at the edges and finally deliver an emergency response.
“Investment in improving the rail network, building a green bus fleet, powering our communities, preserving peatlands, and protecting and enhancing ancient woodlands are just some of the ways action could be taken today to tackle the climate crisis.”