MANILA, Philippines - Seven of every 10 Filipinos acknowledge the dangers posed by climate change to the environment, with Metro Manila residents voicing the biggest concern, results of the latest Pulse Asia “Ulat ng Bayan” survey show.
According to the survey, the percentage of Filipinos who are worried about the dangers of climate change has gone up to 71 percent from 61 percent two years ago.
Pulse Asia also said the figure was a high 84 percent in Metro Manila, possibly because of tropical storm “Ondoy” last year which flooded most of the capital and killed close to 500 people.
It also attributed the rising awareness about climate change among Metro Manila’s 12 million residents to a drought this year that caused severe water shortage.
The same survey also showed that 21 percent of Filipinos believe God is punishing humans for their evil deeds by inflicting environmental catastrophes on them, although the figure is lower than the 23 percent recorded two years ago. The Philippines is predominantly Roman Catholic.
The survey was conducted from July 1 to 11 and involved interviews with 1,200 respondents.
Based on the survey, two in three Filipinos noticed a “big change” in the country’s climate over the past three years, and almost half said they had “little or no knowledge” of the climate change phenomenon.
The survey also found that 66 percent of Filipinos experienced a big change in climate in their places in the past three years.
On the other hand, 11 percent of respondents said there was little change in the climate in their areas during the period, while 23 percent were undecided on the matter. Public ambivalence was most pronounced in Mindanao (33 percent) and the least in Metro Manila (12 percent) and the Visayas (14 percent).
“Between July 2008 and July 2010, more Filipinos felt a big change in the climate in their place (+8 percentage points) while slightly fewer expressed ambivalence on the matter (-6 percentage points),” Pulse Asia said.
Almost 80 percent of Metro Manilans – the highest in the country – noted a big change in local climate. Metro Manila residents who claimed knowledge of climate change made up 63 percent, based on the survey.
In Mindanao, 52 percent of respondents have reported little or no knowledge of climate change. Similarly, the region had the smallest percentage of residents across the country that had noticed a big change in climate, at only 58 percent.
Meanwhile, two thirds of the respondents said recent weather-related calamities in the country and around the world were primarily the result of “human-induced environmental destruction.”
Sixty-three percent of survey respondents expressed belief that the various calamities that hit the Philippines and other countries in recent months had been the result of “humanity’s environmentally destructive ways.”
On the other hand, two in 10 Filipinos see these calamities as “God’s way of warning or punishing countries that have turned evil ways.”
Fourteen percent of respondents believe these calamities are only part of a process that naturally occurs worldwide.
The good news is more Filipinos are ready to take action, like recycling and segregating waste as well as planting trees. Up to 30 percent of those surveyed said they were willing to do more for the environment, such as educate others. However, 10 percent said they would not do anything more to protect the environment.
Pulse Asia describes climate change as “any long-term significant change in the average weather that a given region experiences.”
Asked to comment on the Pulse Asia survey, Science Undersecretary Graciano Yumul said there is a need to intensify the campaign to educate the public on climate change.
“What we are experiencing now is not ordinary. There are a lot of changes attributable to both man-induced climate change and natural variability. Enhanced information campaign understandable to our people about this issue needs to be done,” he said in text message to The STAR.
“We are in the midst of climate-related uncertain times,” Yumul added.