Utahns' Perceptions of Climate Change and Disaster Vulnerabilities

Authors

Mufti Nadimul Quamar Ahmed, Utah State UniversityFollow
Jennifer E. Givens, Utah State UniversityFollow
Peter D. Howe, Utah State UniversityFollow
Jessica D. Ulrich-Schad, Utah State UniversityFollow

Document Type

Report

Publisher

Utah State University

Publication Date

11-2023

First Page

1

Last Page

5

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Abstract

Climate change increases the frequency and severity of extreme weather events, making people more vulnerable in a variety of ways^1-2. It is essential to determine if individuals believe they are susceptible to the effects of climate change in order to develop effective adaptation strategies.

Climate change has contributed to extreme weather occurrences in Utah in recent years. For instance, in the summer of 2022, there was a severe or extreme drought in all of Utah's counties³. Health effects of drought vary with intensity⁴ and can cause climate related deaths directly and indirectly, such as by worsening air quality which can increase cardiovascular and pulmonary disease^5-8. According to most climate models, such events are likely to continue as temperature is expected to increase and snowpack to decrease in the western U.S. and Utah⁹. A recent statewide survey found that Utahns are concerned about various environmental and climatic issues including increased temperature, poor air quality, drought/lack of water etc¹⁰. Moreover, since 2020, more Utahns agree with the scientific consensus that human activities are causing climate change¹¹.

This research brief uses representative statewide survey data from the 2023 Utah People and Environment Poll (UPEP) to understand how Utah residents consider themselves vulnerable to climate change, how prepared they think they are for climate change, and if they believe they need to plan or prepare for climate change.

Comments

Funding Sources: USU College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHaSS), the USU Mountain West Center for Regional Studies, and from CHaSS Alumni, Jorrien & Tiera Peterson, and their company Made by Fell

Recommended Citation

Ahmed, Mufti Nadimul Quamar, Jennifer E. Givens, Peter D. Howe, and Jessica D. Ulrich-Schad. 2023. "Utahns' Perceptions of Climate Change and Disaster Vulnerabilities" Research Brief #2023-5. Utah People and Environment Poll.