Americans' concern over warming slips

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WASHINGTON, March 14 (UPI) -- U.S. residents say they are less concerned about global warming than they were three years ago, a poll indicates.

A Gallup poll indicates 51 percent of Americans say they worry a great deal or fair amount about climate change, down from 66 percent in 2008. The numbers reflect attitudes on the issues have stabilized, compared with those of 2010, Gallup reported Monday.

Gallup's Environment poll asked questions to measure American's concern, knowledge and opinions toward global warning.

The poll found 43 percent of Americans say they believe the seriousness of global warming is generally exaggerated in the news rather than generally correct (26 percent) or generally underestimated (29 percent).

Although there is less agreement among Americans about what is causing global warming, the poll indicated 52 percent of U.S. residents say they believe pollution from human activities is a major cause of temperature increases with 43 percent blaming natural changes in the environment.

Gallup said 2010's update marked the closest division of opinion on this issue over the six times Gallup has asked about it. In 2008, Americans said they believed pollution to be the primary cause by a 20-point margin.

The telephone poll was conducted March 3-6, with a random sample of 1,021 adults and a margin of error of 4 percentage points.