Saving the planet is a task for all of us

The good news is that most people think climate change is a problem, and they believe that they can do something about it. Unfortunately, they do not think they should have to. According to a YouGov survey conducted on behalf of The National, 82 per cent of residents thought the Government should be responsible for protecting the environment. In short, the poll tells us that we are all for doing our bit – just as long as the municipality continues to pick up our litter, we can keep our 4x4s, and it doesn’t cost us anything.These are disturbing findings, but not particularly surprising. Cheap petrol means that anyone who can afford a large car will generally buy one. What we pay for our gas, water and electricity bears no relation either to the cost of producing them or the cost to the environment, leading to wasteful use of these precious resources. Gardens are watered during the hottest parts of the day; we even water our sandpits to keep the dust down. Some of us realise that this is wrong, yet we are unwilling to make any changes that might hurt our wallets. According to the poll, many of us are even unwilling to shell out for more expensive but energy-saving light bulbs.Some of this seems to be due to a lack of understanding of environmental issues. Many of us would not buy a hybrid car because we think they are too slow, too small or too expensive; others simply don’t think normal cars are significant polluters, or feel that hybrids would be somehow more difficult to operate. There are reasons to doubt the usefulness of hybrids, but not that they pollute less or are more complicated to drive.Almost half of us would be willing to pay to instal solar panels, but a substantial portion doubt their usefulness. This ignorance is more than an indictment of the public’s awareness and education. The UAE may be ideally situated for a broad-based solar energy initiative, but at the current cost of electricity it is not economically viable. And while most of us would be willing to use such devices, approximately the same percentage are unwilling to pay more for electricity.We may think that climate change is a problem, but unless we demonstrate a willingness to personally do something about it, no government initiative can change our bad habits. This is supported by the findings that not only are we unwilling to pay more for petrol and electricity, many of us wouldn’t believe a government that told us it was necessary. Until that changes, talk of government action is pointless.As our columnist Sultan Al Qassemi wrote in The National recently: “The divide between the Government’s efforts and the people’s actions is, quite literally, unhealthy. One side is wrong – and it’s up to us to make a difference.”