What Sportsmen Think About Global Warming: A National Opinion Poll
Demographic information 1: Overall, how would you rate the importance of fishing or hunting to you personally, on a scale...
Demographic information
1: Overall, how would you rate the importance of fishing or hunting to you personally, on a scale of 0 to 10, where 0 is not at all important and 10 is extremely important?
Mean = 7.5
Percent giving rating of 10: 28%
2: Respondent’s gender (not asked, but observed by interviewer).
| Male | 75% | |
| Female | 25% |
3: May I ask your age?
| 65 years or older | 22% |
| 55-64 years old | 22% |
| 45-54 years old | 25% |
| 35-44 years old | 15% |
| 25-34 years old | 4% |
| 18-24 years old | 5% |
| Don’t know | 3% |
| Refused | 4% |
4: Do you consider yourself an evangelical Christian?
| Yes | 50% |
| No | 39% |
| Don’t know | 5% |
| Refused | 6% |
5: Do you consider your place of residence to be a large city or urban area, a suburban area, a small city or town, a rural area on a farm or ranch, or a rural area NOT on a farm or ranch?
| Large city or urban area | 14% |
| Suburban area | 17% |
| Small city or town | 25% |
| Rural area on a farm or ranch | 15% |
| Rural area NOT on a farm or ranch | 22% |
| Don’t know | 2% |
| Refused | 4% |
6: How many children, age 17 or younger, do you have living in your household?
| No children | 67% |
| 1 child | 14% |
| 2 children | 8% |
| 3 children | 5% |
| 4 children | 1% |
| Don’t know | 2% |
| Refused | 3% |
7: Do you consider yourself a farmer, a rancher, or both?
| Farmer | 9% |
| Rancher | 2% |
| Both | 3% |
| Neither | 81% |
| Don’t know | 1% |
| Refused | 4% |
8: Are you a member of a labor union?
| Yes | 16% |
| No | 78% |
| Don’t know | 2% |
| Refused | 4% |
Questions about the respondents’ politics
9: On political issues, do you consider yourself conservative, moderate, or liberal?
| Conservative | 36% |
| Moderate | 37% |
| Liberal | 11% |
| Don’t know | 9% |
| Refused | 7% |
10: What is your political affiliation?
| No political affiliation / Independent / moderate | 29% |
| Republican | 27% |
| Democrat | 31% |
| Other | 1% |
| Don’t know | 3% |
| Refused | 10% |
11: Are you a registered Republican? (Asked of those whose affiliation is Republican.)
| Yes | 77% |
| No | 19% |
| Don’t know | 4% |
| Refused | 0% |
12: Are you a registered Democrat? (Asked of those whose affiliation is Democrat.)
| Yes | 88% |
| No | 8% |
| Don’t know | 4% |
| Refused | 0% |
Respondents’ perceptions of global warming
13: Global warming is defined as the rise in temperature of the Earth’s atmosphere. Do you agree or disagree that global warming is currently occurring?
| Strongly agree | 47% | |
| Moderately agree | 29% | |
| Neither agree nor disagree | 3% | |
| Moderately disagree | 5% | |
| Strongly disagree | 7% | |
| Don’t know | 8% |
14: Do you agree or disagree that global warming is primarily caused by pollution from burning fossil fuels?
| Strongly agree | 30% | |
| Moderately agree | 26% | |
| Neither agree nor disagree | 5% | |
| Moderately disagree | 12% | |
| Strongly disagree | 11% | |
| Don’t know | 17% |
15: Global warming is a serious threat to fish and wildlife. (Do you agree or disagree with this statement?)
| Strongly agree | 48% |
| Moderately agree | 23% |
| Neither agree nor disagree | 2% |
| Moderately disagree | 11% |
| Strongly disagree | 11% |
| Don’t know | 6% |
16: Global warming is a serious threat to humans. (Do you agree or disagree with this statement?)
| Strongly agree | 45% |
| Moderately agree | 24% |
| Neither agree nor disagree | 2% |
| Moderately disagree | 11% |
| Strongly disagree | 12% |
| Don’t know | 6% |
17: Global warming is an urgent problem requiring immediate action. (Do you agree or disagree with this statement?)
| Strongly agree | 46% | |
| Moderately agree | 21% | |
| Neither agree nor disagree | 3% | |
| Moderately disagree | 12% | |
| Strongly disagree | 13% | |
| Don’t know | 5% |
18: Global warming threatens the economy and jobs across the nation. (Do you agree or disagree with this statement?)
| Strongly agree | 30% |
| Moderately agree | 23% |
| Neither agree nor disagree | 1% |
| Moderately disagree | 17% |
| Strongly disagree | 17% |
| Don’t know | 10% |
19: Which of the following statements comes closest to your view?
| Global warming is already beginning to impact hunting and fishing conditions | 34% |
| Global warming will impact hunting and fishing conditions in future generations | 39% |
| Global warming will have little or no impact on hunting and fishing conditions, and concern about it is overblown | 23% |
| Don’t know | 4% |
20: Addressing global warming should be a high priority. We can improve the environment and strengthen the economy by investing in clean, renewable energy technologies that create jobs while reducing global warming pollution. (Do you agree or disagree with this statement?)
| Strongly agree | 58% | |
| Moderately agree | 24% | |
| Neither agree nor disagree | 2% | |
| Moderately disagree | 6% | |
| Strongly disagree | 8% | |
| Don’t know | 2% |
21: The U.S. should reduce its emissions of greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide that contribute to global warming and threaten fish and wildlife habitat. (Do you agree or disagree with this statement?)
| Strongly agree | 52% | |
| Moderately agree | 26% | |
| Neither agree nor disagree | 2% | |
| Moderately disagree | 5% | |
| Strongly disagree | 9% | |
| Don’t know | 6% |
22: The U.S. should be a world leader in addressing global warming. (Do you agree or disagree with this statement?)
| Strongly agree | 60% |
| Moderately agree | 20% |
| Neither agree nor disagree | 2% |
| Moderately disagree | 5% |
| Strongly disagree | 10% |
| Don’t know | 4% |
23: Congress should pass legislation that sets a clear national goal for reducing global warming pollution with mandatory timelines because industry has already had enough time to clean up voluntarily. (Do you agree or disagree with this statement?)
| Strongly agree | 51% |
| Moderately agree | 24% |
| Neither agree nor disagree | 2% |
| Moderately disagree | 8% |
| Strongly disagree | 11% |
| Don’t know | 4% |
24: Legislation to address global warming should include funding to protect fish, wildlife, and their habitat from the impacts of global warming. (Do you agree or disagree with this statement?)
| Strongly agree | 54% |
| Moderately agree | 22% |
| Neither agree nor disagree | 1% |
| Moderately disagree | 6% |
| Strongly disagree | 11% |
| Don’t know | 5% |
25: Should the federal government provide incentives, such as tax breaks and subsidies, to companies that develop new energy efficient technologies that reduce global warming?
| Strongly agree | 57% |
| Moderately agree | 27% |
| Neither agree nor disagree | 1% |
| Moderately disagree | 4% |
| Strongly disagree | 9% |
| Don’t know | 2% |
26: Is the country on the right track or the wrong track when it comes to global warming?
| Right track | 26% |
| Wrong track | 43% |
| Don’t know | 31% |
Respondent’s personal observations of global warming and its effects
27: In your personal experience, would you say the quality of hunting and fishing habitats has improved, stayed the same, or gotten worse within the past few years?
| Improved | 22% |
| Stayed the same | 31% |
| Gotten worse | 42% |
| Don’t know | 5% |
28: How concerned are you that the wildlife or fish populations in the areas where you typically hunt or fish will decrease significantly or disappear in the next 10 years?
| Very concerned | 44% |
| Somewhat concerned | 27% |
| Not at all concerned | 27% |
| Don’t know | 2% |
29: Have you observed any of the following conditions where you live?
| Earlier spring? | 37% |
| Earlier bloom times? | 32% |
| Hotter summers? | 39% |
| Warmer, or shorter winters? | 54% |
| Drying wetlands? | 28% |
| Unusual drought? | 30% |
| Less snow? | 36% |
| Less ice cover on ponds, lakes, or rivers? | 28% |
| None of these | 24% |
30: Do you believe that (seasonal weather condition given in the above question) that you have observed (is/are) related to global warming?
| Yes | 54% |
| No | 22% |
| Don’t know | 24% |
31: Have you observed any of the following conditions where you live?
| More wildfires, forest fires, or brush fires? | 15% |
| Unusual flooding? | 13% |
| More intense storms, including hurricanes? | 31% |
| Changing migratory bird patterns? | 15% |
| Decreasing bird, fish, or wildlife populations? | 35% |
| New pests or invasive species? | 20% |
| None of these | 38% |
32: Do you believe that (natural disaster/wildlife condition(s) given in the above question) that you have observed (is/are) related to global warming?
| Yes | 44% |
| No | 35% |
| Don’t know | 21% |
Questions about America’s energy policy:
33: Which of the following do you think is the best way to address America’s energy needs?
| Drilling for more oil and gas in the U.S., including areas within wildlife refuges and other public lands, to increase our domestic energy supply. | 15% |
| Conserve more, waste less, and develop more fuel-efficient vehicles so we use less oil and gas. | 27% |
| Rely less on oil and gas and expand development of renewable forms of energy like wind, solar, and ethanol. | 51% |
| Don’t know | 7% |
34: President Bush said in his State of the Union address that “America is addicted to oil”. Do you agree or disagree with this statement?
| Strongly agree | 69% | |
| Moderately agree | 12% | |
| Neither agree nor disagree | 1% | |
| Moderately disagree | 7% | |
| Strongly disagree | 8% | |
| Don’t know | 3% |
35: Are the Administration and Congress doing enough to break America’s addiction to oil? (Asked of those who agree that America is addicted to oil.)
| Yes | 6% |
| No | 86% |
| Don’t know | 8% |
36: Is the country on the right track or the wrong track in meeting our national energy needs?
| Right track | 18% |
| Wrong track | 69% |
| Don’t know | 13% |
37: Should the federal government provide incentives, such as tax breaks and subsidies, to industries to replace some energy from oil, gas, and coal with renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar power?
| Strongly agree | 61% | |
| Moderately agree | 25% | |
| Neither agree nor disagree | 1% | |
| Moderately disagree | 4% | |
| Strongly disagree | 7% | |
| Don’t know | 1% |
38: Should the federal government provide incentives, such as tax breaks and subsidies, to make energy conservation technologies more affordable for citizens?
| Strongly agree | 69% |
| Moderately agree | 18% |
| Neither agree nor disagree | 1% |
| Moderately disagree | 4% |
| Strongly disagree | 7% |
| Don’t know | 1% |
Questions about respondents’ voting habits
39: Are you currently a registered voter?
| Yes | 82% |
| No | 11% |
| Don’t know | 2% |
| Refused | 5% |
40: During Presidential election years, would you say that you vote always, usually, sometimes, rarely, or never?
| Always | 64% |
| Usually | 11% |
| Sometimes | 7% |
| Rarely | 5% |
| Never | 5% |
| Don’t know | 2% |
| Refused | 6% |
41: During non-Presidential election years, would you say that you vote always, usually, sometimes, rarely, or never?
| Always | 44% |
| Usually | 20% |
| Sometimes | 13% |
| Rarely | 8% |
| Never | 8% |
| Don’t know | 2% |
| Refused | 6% |
42: Did you vote in the 2004 Presidential election?
| Yes | 77% |
| No | 15% |
| Don’t know | 2% |
| Refused | 6% |
43: Whom did you vote for in the 2004 Presidential election? (Of those who voted.)
| George W. Bush | 53% |
| John Kerry | 29% |
| Ralph Nader | 0% |
| Other | 0% |
| Don’t know | 2% |
| Refused | 16% |
44: Do you plan to vote in the 2006 non-Presidential election this November?
| Yes | 76% |
| No | 9% |
| Don’t know | 8% |
| Refused | 6% |
45: In general, how much of an influence do candidates’ conservation policies or views have on your actual voting behavior? Would you say they have a major influence, a minor influence, or no influence?
| Major influence | 37% |
| Minor influence | 43% |
| No influence | 17% |
| Don’t know | 3% |
46: Which candidate for office you would be more likely to favor. (Note that the order of candidate position was randomized to eliminate question order bias.)
Candidate A believes we must take action now to reduce pollution contributing to global warming and supports strong laws.
Candidate B believes more study is needed on global warming and believes there should only be voluntary responses rather than government regulation. Which candidate would you be more likely to favor?
| “Strong laws” candidate | 64% |
| “More study” candidate | 28% |
| Don’t know | 8% |
The McCain/Lieberman Climate Stewardship and Innovation Act
The following six questions asked about support or opposition to five elements of the proposed McCain/Lieberman Climate Stewardship and Innovation Act (S.342, H.759) and then about overall support or opposition to the bill.
47: The bill would provide $500 million annually to state wildlife agencies for fish and wildlife conservation. Do you support or oppose this element of the bill?
| Strongly support | 58% |
| Moderately support | 26% |
| Neither support nor oppose | 1% |
| Moderately oppose | 5% |
| Strongly oppose | 7% |
| Don’t know | 3% |
48: The bill would provide funding to boost research and development of advanced clean energy technologies, including new ways of using crops from America’s farms to create fuels that substitute for oil. Do you support or oppose this element of the bill?
| Strongly support | 70% |
| Moderately support | 22% |
| Neither support nor oppose | 1% |
| Moderately oppose | 2% |
| Strongly oppose | 4% |
| Don’t know | 1% |
49: The bill would provide funding to America’s auto industry to help retool auto plants to incorporate the latest gas-saving technologies. Do you support or oppose this element of the bill?
| Strongly support | 49% |
| Moderately support | 22% |
| Neither support nor oppose | 2% |
| Moderately oppose | 8% |
| Strongly oppose | 17% |
| Don’t know | 2% |
50: The bill would provide funding to develop a new generation of advanced nuclear power plants. Do you support or oppose this element of the bill?
| Strongly support | 32% |
| Moderately support | 26% |
| Neither support nor oppose | 6% |
| Moderately oppose | 12% |
| Strongly oppose | 18% |
| Don’t know | 7% |
51: The bill would provide payments to farmers and landowners who conserve soil and plant trees for reforestation. Do you support or oppose this element of the bill?
| Strongly support | 64% |
| Moderately support | 21% |
| Neither support nor oppose | 2% |
| Moderately oppose | 6% |
| Strongly oppose | 6% |
| Don’t know | 2% |
52: Overall, do you support or oppose legislation with the provisions in the McCain/Lieberman bill?
| Strongly support | 34% |
| Moderately support | 43% |
| Neither support nor oppose | 6% |
| Moderately oppose | 6% |
| Strongly oppose | 4% |
| Don’t know | 8% |
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Methodology
Responsive Management conducted this national survey of hunters and anglers on behalf of the National Wildlife Federation. The survey was administered in March through April, 2006. A total of 1,031 telephone interviews were completed: 212 interviews with those who fished only, 148 interviews with those who hunted only, and 671 interviews with those who both fished and hunted. The interviews were only of those 18 years of age and older.
For the survey, telephones were selected as the preferred sampling medium because of the universality of telephone ownership. To ensure the integrity of the telephone survey data, Responsive Management has interviewers who have been trained according to the standards established by the Council of American Survey Research Organizations. Interviews were conducted Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., Saturday noon to 5:00 p.m., and Sunday from 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., local time. A five-callback design was used to maintain the representativeness of the sample, to avoid bias toward people easy to reach by telephone, and to provide an equal opportunity for all to participate. When a respondent could not be reached on the first call, subsequent calls were placed on different days of the week and at different times of the day. The software used for data collection was Questionnaire Programming Language 4.1.
The analysis of data was performed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences software as well as proprietary software developed by Responsive Management. The data were weighted to represent the actual nationwide population of anglers only, hunters only, and those who participated in both activities. Sampling error was + 3.05 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level. The proportions of hunters only, anglers only, and hunter/anglers was designed to correspond with the most recent (2001) National Survey of Fishing, Hunting and Wildlife Associated Recreation conducted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Census Bureau.