Green thoughts linked to wealth

2008-07-10 14:40

Cape Town - The richer they are, the more South Africans are aware of and concerned about climate change.

This was one of the findings of a poll released on Thursday by TNS Research Surveys.

The survey was conducted among 2 000 adults in the major metropolitan areas earlier this year.

TNS said 31% of those questioned felt climate change would not affect them much. However just over half of the respondents said it would.

Seventy percent acknowledged that climate change was already having a big effect on the world's weather.

"Differing views on this issue are primarily driven by income levels," TNS said.

Among those with a monthly household income of below R8 000, 34% felt climate change would not affect them very much.

However this dropped to 28% for the income band R8 000 to R15 000 and 21% for those with higher incomes.

The realisation that climate change was already having a big effect on the world's weather was expressed by 61% of people in households with a monthly income below R4 000.

The figure rose to 75% for those in the R4 000 to R15 000 band and 83% for those with higher incomes.

"Poorer people are... no doubt more preoccupied with more immediate survival issues," TNS said.

It said that given that climate change would lead to rises in sea level, it was perhaps surprising that respondents in coastal areas as a whole showed no greater concern about its impact on them than those inland.

- SAPA