Poll: 74 percent say saving La. coast top issue in their lifetimesNearly three in four respondents said saving Louisiana’s coast is the most important issue of their lifetime, according to a poll conducted for the America’s Wetland Foundation.
Seventy-four percent said they agreed that ‘‘saving our coast is the most important issue of my lifetime.’’
Val Marmillion, managing director of the foundation, said respondents want leaders to cooperate and forgo partisan politics. Ninety-five percent of the respondents agreed that a unified effort is the best hope for coastal restoration and protection, not assigning blame for what has been lost.
Marmillion said the pollster has not seen ‘‘such strength in numbers around an issue … particularly in this partisan environment.’’
‘‘There is a concern that if we don’t do it in this generation that we are going to lose a lot,’’ he said.
Virtually all the respondents — 97 percent — said they wanted government, industry, education and nonprofit organizations to work as a team to restore the coast.
‘‘That’s brought about because they (respondents) see while there might be an oil settlement from BP, there’s not a lot of money coming from Washington,’’ said Marmillion. ‘‘How are we going to fix the problem?’’
Respondents’ results included:
85 percent are either very concerned or somewhat concerned about coastal wetlands loss.
90 percent believe the federal government should be responsible for protecting coastal areas supplying energy to the United States.
87 percent believe the oil industry should lobby Congress for federal protection of coastal areas that support energy development.
97 percent believe the sustainability of the Gulf Coast’s recreation and commerce should be a priority.
94 percent believe the federal government should give states that produce energy a bigger slice of oil and gas revenues.
97 percent believe conflicts between energy production and environmental protection have become too politically divisive.
88 percent believe restoration of the coast would help reduce the risk of flooding and, consequently, the problem of skyrocketing flood insurance rates.
75 percent did not want oyster fishermen’s concerns to stop the creation of diversion projects in the Mississippi River and the restoration of barrier islands.
The poll, conducted by The Kitchens Group, surveyed 400 randomly selected Louisiana voters. It has a 4.9 percent margin of error, with a 95 percent confidence level.
Online: www.americaswetland.com.(American Press Archives)
