Latest results from an ongoing Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) project suggest that the level of support for some policies such as the banning of peat, coal, and oil for home heating is highest in urban areas.
The EPA today (Tuesday, November 5) released new climate opinion maps which the agency said show “a high level of consistency across Ireland in terms of climate change attitudes, policy preferences, and behaviours”.
But it also confirmed that there are “slight regional variations” in the level of support for different policies.
The maps are the latest part of the Climate Change in the Irish Mind’ project which is an ongoing study of the Irish population’s beliefs, attitudes, policy preferences, and behaviours regarding climate change.
According to Dr. Eimear Cotter, director of the EPA’s office of evidence and assessment, the interactive climate opinion maps make the Climate Change in the Irish Mind data “accessible to a wide audience across Ireland”.
“These maps show nationwide acceptance of the scientific consensus on climate change, and strong support for most climate action policies, with minimal variation based on where people live, and that most climate attitudes were resilient in the face of cost-of-living increases.
“However, we also see that public understanding of the causes of climate change is limited and varies between counties.
“In some counties, less than half of the population understands that climate change is human caused, compared to about six in ten in other areas,” Dr Cotter said.
EPA
The data in the maps are based on the results of a survey carried out in two waves, from May 24 to July 29, 2021 and August to October 2023.
According to the EPA “5,312 residents of the Republic of Ireland” were recruited to take part in the survey “using a random digit dial sample of live Irish telephone numbers”.
“About 80% of survey respondents were reached through mobile phone numbers and 20% through landline phone numbers,” the agency said.
The latest Public Opinion Estimates 2023 from the survey show that 82% of people who took part in the survey were “worried about climate change”.
The results also showed that 59% of respondents support banning peat coal and oil for home heating while 41% oppose this.