Public Resource
Poll: As Earth’s temperature rises, Massachusetts residents’ sense of urgency on climate change declines
Sabrina Shankman and Dharna Noor. Boston Globe

Majorities of Massachusetts residents support proposals to reduce buildings’ climate impacts, and communities of color are most concerned about climate change. Another state-level poll, courtesy of the Boston Globe and MassINC, finds that Massachusetts residents widely support requirements to make new construction in the state more climate-friendly: 70% support requiring new or renovated buildings to be ready to charge electric vehicles. 67% support requiring new or renovated buildings to use only renewable electricity. 57% support requiring new or renovated buildings to be fully electric, using no oil or natural gas. An even larger majority (76%) support a proposal to update the state’s building code to require that buildings be better protected against climate change. 77% believe that climate change will be a serious problem for Massachusetts, including nearly half (48%) who believe it will be a “very” serious problem. Majorities of Latino (60%) and Black residents (57%) believe that climate change will cause “very serious” issues for the state if left unchecked, compared to 46% of White residents.