69% of Floridians believe coast threatened by rising sea levels
mongabay.com
June 24, 2008
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69 percent of Floridians believe that parts of the state’s coasts may need to be abandoned due to rising sea levels over the next 50 years according to a new survey conducted by researchers at Yale University and the University of Miami.
A survey of 1,077 adults in Florida from May 1, 2008 to May 19, 2008 found that 65 percent of Floridians believe that global warming is already having or will have dangerous impacts on the state within the next 10 years. 55 percent say they believe global warming is caused mainly by human activities, while 80 percent believe climate change will cause worse storms, hurricanes and tornadoes.
“Floridians believe global warming will have serious consequences here at home and are growing increasingly concerned about the issue,” said Dr. Kenny Broad, associate professor at the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science.
The survey found more than sixty percent of Floridians support state policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, even if these policies have personal economic ramifications, including requiring state utilities to generate at least 20 percent of their electricity from renewable sources, introducing subsidies for energy efficiency, and supporting the installation of solar panels on state-owned buildings “even if the electricity generated is significantly more expensive than what state government normally pays for its electricity”.