The environment and climate change concern Spaniards more than pensions or mortgages

The concern for the degradation of the environment is increasingly consolidated in Spain. Climate change and the environment are two of the main problems for Spaniards, even above pensions, the mortgage, the COVID pandemic, racism or migration, according to the Opinion Barometer carried out by the Center for Sociological Research (CIS) this March. Besides, 80% of the population affirms that they have made changes in their daily habits to help combat climate change.

The results, for which almost 3,800 people have been interviewed from March 1 to 11show that for 1.8 percent of Spaniards, climate change is the main problem that currently exists in Spain, followed closely by the environment, which is for 1.5 percent of the sample.

In the spontaneous ranking of the most relevant problems for Spaniards, between climate change and the environment is the increase in taxes, the most relevant for 1.6 percent.

More important than pensions

These three concerns of the Spanish are above issues such as pensions, which is just behind the environment in the ranking, and that is the most important thing for the 1.3 percent; the lack of trust in politicians and institutions, which is the biggest problem for the 1.2 percent; mortgages, for 0.4 percent; racism, the main issue for 0.3 percent along with drugs, or emigration, which is the most worrying for 0.2 percent.

Asked in particular about climate change, this is the first problem that most affects 0.5 percent of Spaniards; the second problem for 0.7 percent of respondents and the third most important problem for 1% of the total. In total, this is one of the most important problems for 2.2 percent of respondents.

In addition, asked specifically if at this moment climate change worries you a lot, little or not at all, 30.5 percent care a lot; 42.1 percent quite a bit; at 17.5 percent, little and at 8 percent, nothing.

Likewise, for 56.4 percent of those surveyed, the action of human beings is greatly affecting climate change; for 30.3 percent, quite a bit; for 8.5 percent, it has little influence and only 2.4 percent of Spaniards consider that human action has no influence on climate change.

80% have made changes in their lives to avoid climate change

Regarding the possibilities of being able to reverse climate change, that it can be stopped so that the situation does not worsen or if there is an irreversible situation in which nothing can be done, for 60.7 percent of the Spaniards can stop the warming so that the situation does not worsen; 17.5 percent consider that the situation is irreversible and that nothing can be done and 14.8 percent believe that climate change can be reversed.

This concern has led to changes in daily life and in some daily practices in the last two years to try to stop or reduce climate change for 80.3 percent of Spaniards compared to 18.5 percent who have not. made no changes.

of that 80.3% who have modified their habits to contribute to action against climate change, the most introduced behavior is the recycling of waste in clean points and the classification of garbage at home and the reduction of waste, something that 57.6 percent of those surveyed have done; followed by 22.1 percent who have stopped using the car and 20 percent trying to control energy consumption at home. 13 percent control the consumption of water and also 13.1 percent use public transport and 6.4 percent use a bicycle.

In particular, hehe two changes most undertaken in the last two years by that 80.3 percent are the recycling of waste in clean points and/or classification of garbage at home, the reduction of waste, which has introduced 57.6 percent and stop using the car, something that 22.1 percent of those surveyed have done.

Out of one hundred percent of those surveyed, asked about the two most important changes they have made in their lives to reduce or stop climate change, 19.7 percent have done nothing, compared to 46.3 who have introduced the habit of recycling waste in clean points and/or sorting garbage at home as well as reducing waste; followed by 17.8 percent who have stopped using the car.