Water Resources

By far one of the most important natural resource and environmental issues for Americans today is water resources. Water resource issues consistently rank at or near the top in importance for Americans. Although Americans care about water, factual knowledge about water and water resources is generally low. The implications for natural resource and outdoor recreation management are straightforward. Americans’ health depends on a clean water supply, as does the health of our natural resources and the quality of our outdoor recreation experiences. Water quantity also has important implications for human health and the health of the environment. Any resource management, biological, or outreach program that is linked directly to water quality and quantity will inevitably touch upon the most prominent natural resource concern within the hearts and minds of the American public. Yet, it is also important to communicate the facts about water resources and educate audiences on basic water issues and conservation efforts.

In study after study conducted by Responsive Management, water quality and water resource protection consistently rise to the top among the most important natural resource issues for Americans. For example, in a nationwide survey conducted by Responsive Management for the American Museum of Natural History, Americans were asked how concerned they were about common issues of concern as well as several water-related issues. Majorities of Americans indicated that they were very concerned about issues related to water resources. Furthermore, when issues related to water resources were compared to typical issues of concern, water resources ranked higher than “national security,” “the economy,” and “crime rates.”

In regional studies conducted by Responsive Management, water-related issues often ranked highest in importance in comparison to other natural resource and fish and wildlife issues. When asked in an open-ended question (in which residents could name any fish and wildlife issue facing their state), 29% of northeastern U.S. residents said polluted water/water quality was the most important issue, by far the most popular response. Results were similar among southeastern U.S. residents: water quality/pollution (27%) was the top-named fish and wildlife issue facing the respondent’s state, followed distantly by habitat loss (13%) and urban sprawl (9%).

Many statewide studies conducted by Responsive Management have yielded the same results. For example, a Responsive Management study conducted in Delaware on water quality found that 81% of Delaware residents said that they were very or somewhat concerned about water quality. More Delaware respondents named water quality as one of the most important natural resource issues than named any other issue. In a study of Texas residents, the top natural resource issue for Texans was also water resources.

High levels of support also exist for increased funding to protect and improve water resources. In a Responsive Management study, 65% of Idaho residents said that more time and money should be spent protecting Idaho’s water resources, with more than half of those indicating that much more time and money should be spent. Among Indiana residents, improving water quality was the top ranked answer, with almost all respondents (97%) considering it a very or moderately important program (89% regarded it as a very important program).

In Responsive Management’s recent national study on attitudes toward and knowledge of water resources, Americans were fairly evenly split on whether they believe water resources in the U.S. are healthy or unhealthy; however, a majority (64%) indicated that they believe the health of the world’s waters are getting worse.

Similar to the split opinions of Americans nationwide on the health of water resources, just under a majority (45%) of southeastern U.S. residents think that their state’s waters are healthy. Note that “somewhat healthy” led “very healthy” answers by about three to one. A substantial percentage (41%), however, think their state’s waters are unhealthy. Despite that nearly a majority of respondents feel that their state’s waters are healthy, a majority (51%) rated their concern for water quality at a “9” or “10,” the highest levels of concern.

The primary motivation for Americans’ concern for water resources are health reasons—human health, as well as fish and wildlife health. In a Responsive Management study of the Georgia public’s perception of water issues, residents reported being concerned about water quality and water quantity in Georgia because of the potential effects on human well-being more so than the potential effects on environmental well-being.

While Americans care deeply about the health of the nation’s water resources, knowledge levels are generally low. For example, in the nationwide study conducted by Responsive Management to measure the public’s knowledge of and opinions on water resources, 41% of Americans could not name a component of a basic water cycle, such as evaporation or rain; less than half of Americans know that three-quarters of the Earth’s surface is covered with water; and less than 4% know that only 1% of the Earth’s water is drinkable.

Despite the fact that water quality and water resource protection are the top-of-the-mind natural resource issues for most Americans, most Americans do not recognize the link between their own personal habits and the resulting impact on water resources. For example, in the Delaware study on water quality, respondents were nearly equally split between those who said that their own daily activities have a minor impact on water quality (47%) and those who said their daily activities have no impact on water quality (44%). Only 6% of respondents felt that their daily activities have a major impact on water quality. More specifically, Responsive Management’s nationwide study on Americans and water resources showed that a majority of respondents (57%) correctly said that the health of fish in the northeastern U.S. is affected by air pollution created in the Midwest, but only 26% gave the correct answer without also giving an incorrect answer as well.

The lack of personal responsibility in relation to water resources can be mitigated by increased education and outreach. For example, 90% of Delaware respondents said that they would be likely to change their behavior to help improve water quality if they knew that doing so would help protect future generations, and 79% of Delaware respondents said that they would be likely to change their behavior to help improve water quality if they knew that poor water quality led to unsafe drinking water.

In addition to water quality, water quantity is an issue of increasing importance. With many states experiencing drought over the past few years, water conservation efforts are rising to the forefront of natural resource management. Effective outreach campaigns that target the public and individual homeowners are becoming increasingly necessary. Water quantity studies can include qualitative research and/or quantitative research to measure the public’s attitudes and concern about water quantity, as well as behavioral changes the public would be willing to make to help conserve water. Water conservation campaigns can be developed to convey messages to the public about issues such as the importance of being mindful of watering restrictions, replacing high water-using household fixtures, and practicing xeriscaping (drought-resistant landscaping). Responsive Management has been involved with such campaigns, including a major project conducted for the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Pollution Prevention Assistance Division—the latter campaign encouraged homeowners to adopt water conservation measures.

Responsive Management has decades of experience measuring attitudes toward water resource issues; notable examples of our projects on water issues include the following: