ABSTRACT
Continued popularity of environmental issues on the political scene depends to a large extent on the continuing strength and airing of public attitudes. This chapter describes a predominantly descriptive analysis of a selection of general environmental issues covered in the 1996 Northern Ireland Social Attitudes survey. It examines attitudes towards the environment in Northern Ireland focusing, in particular, on aspects of responsibility, trust and action relating to environmental protection. The relatively high level of trust in Northern Ireland is somewhat unusual given that in other public opinion polls, politicians were consistently revealed as being the least credible group when it comes to decision-making. The Northern Irish tend to have a slightly more balanced view that government and ordinary people are equally responsible and capable of protecting the environment. The most extreme differences in attitudes were frequently recorded between the highest and lowest educationally qualified groups, attitudes towards governmental and individual responsibility for the environment being typical examples.
