Californians Are Willing to Pay for Cleaner Air, Poll Finds

Californians are deeply concerned about air pollution and they consider vehicle emissions a big culprit -- yet most do not see their own cars and sport utility vehicles as part of the problem, according to a poll being released today.

The poll by the nonpartisan Public Policy Institute of California and the Hewlett, Irvine and Packard foundations found that Californians would be willing to make economic sacrifices for the sake of the environment -- as long as it did not involve giving up their own trucks and cars.

Three-quarters of those polled favored requiring auto makers to boost the fuel efficiency of vehicles sold in the country, even if it meant increasing car costs. Nearly two-thirds would like to see tougher air pollution standards on new vehicles, even if it drove up prices. Seventy-nine percent -- including 69% of sport utility vehicle drivers -- would support changing federal fuel standards for SUVs to make them as stringent as those for passenger cars.

However, 73% of respondents drove alone to work, 62% wished to continue driving a vehicle as big as the one they are using now, and 55% did not believe that their own cars and trucks were significant contributors to air pollution. Only 7% did not drive at all, and two in three reported having at least two licensed vehicles in their household. On the other hand, 45% said they would be willing to seriously consider using public transit to commute to work.

“Californians and their car culture puts the environmental challenge in a different perspective. We are dealing with a very strong lifestyle preference,” said Mark Baldassare, the Public Policy Institute’s statewide survey director. “They don’t particularly see that their personal driving habits have an effect on fuel shortages and prices and on air pollution. That’s what makes it a difficult issue.”

Three out of four Californians considered air pollution a problem in their part of the state, making it the top priority among all environmental issues, while 47% considered vehicle emissions the biggest cause. The findings were based on a telephone survey of 2,002 California adults conducted between June 4 and June 15.

Among other results, the poll found that 86% of Californians consider candidates’ environmental positions an important factor in how they will vote in the 2004 presidential elections. Although 53% approved of the job President Bush is doing, only 37% supported how he was handling environmental issues.

The poll also found that only 28% approved of Gov. Gray Davis’ record in office, and just 30% agreed with his handling of environmental issues -- a number Baldassare said “speaks volumes” about the Democratic governor’s plummeting popularity as he faces a recall threat.

When asked which party best represented their environmental views, one in five chose the Green Party, another number the pollster said raised questions for Davis and the Democrats, who have traditionally captured the environmental vote. Only 39% chose the Democratic Party and just 27% the Republican.

The poll once again confirmed the commonly held view that Californians are strong supporters of the environment, more so than the nation as a whole.

Asked which should be given greater priority, the environment or economic growth, 65% chose the environment, including most Republicans as well as Democrats. In a nationwide Gallup Poll recently, only 47% of Americans gave environmental protection greater weight.

“Changing demographics in the state seem to have had little effect on environmental attitudes. In fact, Latinos if anything seem to be even more environmentally conscious than whites,” Baldassare said. “The air may be hazy in Los Angeles and the Central Valley, but people are also thinking of things like global warming, and the fact that what we are doing might have implications for the planet.”

Nearly three-fourths of respondents believed that immediate steps were needed to combat global warming, with 69% saying they would be willing to make major lifestyle changes to address the problem.