Environment gets back burner in struggling economy

With a struggling economy, officials say going green may be going out of style.

In an annual survey of more than 1,500 Americans, the Pew Research Center asked folks to rank their priorities for the upcoming year and the new presidential administration.

After compiling the numbers, each priority was ranked by the percentage of first place votes they received.

The environment was the biggest loser, dropping 15 percentage points from a year ago and ranking 16th of 20.

"This is a general problem," said F. Gregory Hayden, professor of economics at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, whose expertise and fieldwork include environmental and agricultural economics. "When people are afraid of falling off the cliff, they don't become interested in the quality of the cliff."

Hayden said polls show people are still very interested in environmental issues, but don't do much about it.

Carroll Doherty, associate director of the Pew Research Center, said this trend is nothing they haven't seen before.

"This is similar to what we saw in 2002 following 9/11," Doherty said. "The environment lost focus because of so much on terrorism ... It doesn't mean it has fallen out of the agenda."

Though Hayden agrees people are still worried, he believes this problem started long ago and has been accentuated by falling wages for workers and a consumption-driven belief system.

"(Americans) are sold on the idea that status as a human being comes from consumption," Hayden said. "They devote their time to working more, and there's not an emphasis or the time to get into real issues."

An example of consumption with a degree of disregard to the environment is the now-tabled push for a new arena in the Haymarket area. A project that looks good on Lincoln's resume for bringing in top-bill entertainers, Hayden said it's also designed to bring large numbers of vehicles and airplanes from long distances to the capitol city, something that has proved harmful to the ozone layer.

Because people in every corner of Earth breathe the same air, this problem is larger than the United States.

"China is now number one in CO2 and creating global warming," Hayden said. "They (produce) more and more goods and pollution, and yet it makes their people worse off and America worse off."

The Chinese government is also famous for their emphasis on keeping the wages of their countrymen low, a practice Hayden said affects salaries here at home.

He also said China's production-driven society may be viewing the recession as an opportunity to flood the global market with cheap goods, and he added global warming is somewhat of a "fitting end to globalization."

But with the economic outlook dimming daily, people's focuses have turned inward.

"(The survey) is people saying, in their own minds, what's most important," Doherty said. "It's an updating of usual attitudes."

UNL students seem to understand the connection between a down economy and shrinking environmental interest.

"It's a cultural thing," said Philip Moussavou, a sophomore electrical engineering major. "If someone is having to choose between saving the environment or paying their bills, they're probably going to pay their bills. The environment will usually be second (to the economy).

"It's a Western mentality to focus on material things," Moussavou said.

"Most people are in a situation in life where they're working harder and longer," Hayden said. "They believe consumption gains status and not going to the city council."

America touts itself as the greatest democracy in the world, and in being such, the power starts with the people.

"Politics is how we (in America) get things done," Hayden said. "If people aren't involved in politics, they aren't solving problems."

This doesn't mean everyone should declare their candidacy for state senator.

"In some cases, money is everybody's worry," said Katie Madsen, a senior business administration major and external vice president of the Association for Students of the University of Nebraska. "But being more conscious about consumption can save money for people.

"Doing things like keeping electric bills lower or not wasting as much food or water can both save money and do good for the environment," she said.

Madsen said in bad economic times such as these, it can seem like everything is giving way.

"It sucks that this is one of the things (giving way)," she said. "Hopefully it will be one of the first to come back."

Trends show this to be the case, at least when the bad times turn good.

For now it looks like the battle being waged between policy makers and the economy are consuming most of the headlines.

"(Economic czar) Larry Summers is probably not going to take these ideas very seriously," Hayden said. "I don't expect much in the short run from Washington."

EVANCOTTEN@DAILYNEBRASKAN.COM