Columbia International Affairs Online: Policy Briefs

CIAO DATE: 07/2009

The Environmental State of Canada

Kenneth P. Green, Ben Eisen

June 2009

American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research

Abstract

Canadians care deeply about the quality of the environment and the protection of nature. A 2007 Decima poll showed that Canadians were more concerned about the environment than about healthcare. A 2009 poll from Nanos found that in the context of the potential prosperity from oil sands versus the potential environmental harm, most Canadians put environmental protection above economic prosperity. Even the current recession has not dampened Canadians' ardour for environmental protection: An Ipsos-Reid poll in February 2009 found that 57 per cent of the public favoured aggressive actions on climate change despite the economic situation.