This opinion poll was conducted with the cooperation of the Lebanese University (Campus 2) in June of this year, to assess the Lebanese public’s level of environmental awareness and understanding of basic environmental principles. A representative sample of 600 people was surveyed in Greater Beirut, with a gender distribution of 57% male and 43% female.

The survey presented several factors that may aid in the effort to protect the environment, and respondents were asked to identify the aspect they deemed the most important. The majority (32.2%) of respondents believed that participating in efforts and activities that safeguard the environment is the best way to protect it, while 19% referred to international cooperation to protect nature, 17.8% believed dialogue between parents & children about environmental problems is most effective, with almost the same percentage (17.7%) who deemed separation of waste for recycling purposes as paramount, and finally 13.3% called for confirmation that plant and animal life plays an important role in protecting the environment.

The Basics

When asked to provide an estimate of the earth’s population, more than half of those polled (55.2%) responded with the correct answer of 6 billion people, while 17.2% said they did not know, 13.5% thought the earth’s population is 8 billion, 6.8% believed it to be even greater, at 10 billion, while 7.3% thought it was only 3 billion.

Graph 1 illustrates the responses as to which element makes up 80% of the earth’s atmosphere, with the correct answer being nitrogen.

In terms of the matter that constitutes the make-up of most living creatures, 70.8% gave the correct response of 90% water, while 12.7% did not know, 7.5% believed the answer to be 90% protein, 6.5% thought it was 90% vitamins, while 2.5% responded that it was 90% minerals.

Notions on the use and production of recycled paper versus new paper was gauged and is illustrated in Graph 2.

Respondents were asked to define the role of a nature reserve and 80.3% responded correctly, identifying it as an area dedicated to the protection of biological diversity and the maintenance of natural and cultural resources. 7.5% characterized it as a restricted area protected by the police, while 6.3% described it as an area protected by the army due to politicians residing there, 0.5% gave another definition and 5.4% did not know.

State of the environment

On the issue of pollution, 58.8% of respondents correctly identified the modes of transport as the greatest cause of pollution in Lebanon, whereas 21.5% attributed it to industrial waste, 19.2% related it to the burning of house waste and 0.5% did not know.

In terms of actions that reduce the danger of global warming, the majority (62.2%) believed incorrectly that it was through planting trees, while 26% responded correctly that it was through the decrease in use of thermal energy, 6.3% believed the danger would be reduced by recycling and 5.5% did not know.

Finally, when asked to describe the state of the environment in Lebanon today, 80.8% characterized it as bad, 15.2% as acceptable, 3.5% as good and 0.5% did not know.