WASHINGTON — Almost 30 years after the inaugural Earth Day, Americans are broadly supportive of the goals of the environmental movement, says a new Gallup Poll. But they don't consider it a top priority.
"People care about it, but it's not the most significant issue," said Riley Dunlap, a coordinator of the environmental poll for Gallup.
Four of five respondents said they agreed with the goals of the environmental movement and more than two-thirds said they were either active with the movement or sympathetic to its goals.
While 16 percent were actively involved in the environmental movement, another 55 percent were sympathetic to the cause. That's higher than when Gallup first asked the question more than 20 years ago, when six out of 10 were either active or sympathetic.
The poll of 1,004 adults was taken April 3-9 and has an error margin of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
Dunlap said the public support for the environmental cause was generally higher now than it was when the first Earth Day was celebrated 30 years ago. Earth Day falls on April 22.
But the levels of support aren't as high as in 1990, after several events drew attention to the environment, most notably the Exxon Valdez oil spill, global warming and medical waste on the beaches.
The environment doesn't rank as high as an issue in the presidential contest as issues like education, health care, crime, family values and the economy, the poll said. But it ranks in the middle with such issues as gun control and tax reduction.
Dunlap said if the environment were to be an important issue in a presidential election this would be the year because of Al Gore's involvement in environmental issues.
"Results suggest it's still a second-level issue," Dunlap said. "It's unclear how it will play in the election."
The level of concern about specific environmental problems has dropped in the last decade. But the number who think a great deal of progress has been made in dealing with environmental problems has doubled to about a quarter of the population in the last 10 years.
More than four in five Americans said they have participated in certain environmental activities in the past year such as recycling newspapers, glass, aluminum and motor oil, avoiding products that harm the environment, trying to use less water and reducing their household's use of energy.