For Immediate Release - April, 23 2008 Contacts:Oliver Bernstein, 512.289.8618David Willett, 202.675.6698 New Sierra Club Poll Shows Hispanic Voters Concerned about Global Warmingand Energy, Willing to Take Action Groundbreaking Bendixen & Associates-Conducted Poll is the First-EverNational Survey of Hispanic Voters on Energy and Environmental Issues Washington, D.C. - Hispanic voters are overwhelmingly concerned aboutenergy, global warming and environmental issues and are willing to takeaction to find solutions, according to results of a Sierra Club-sponsorednational poll released today and conducted by Bendixen & Associates. Thefirst-ever national poll of Hispanics on environmental issues was conductedMarch 20-30, 2008, and it found that U.S. Hispanics - a growing andpowerful demographic - are deeply connected to nature and are concernedabout the environment enough to take action to protect their communitiesand their families. To view detailed poll results, please visithttp://www.sierraclub.org/ecocentro/survey/ Sergio Bendixen, pollster with Bendixen & Associates, said that the pollrevealed that the overwhelming majority of Hispanic voters say that energyand environmental issues have a significant impact on their quality of lifeand the overall health of their family. "Energy and global warming is viewed as one of the two most importantenvironmental problems for Hispanic families, and four-fifths of thesevoters consider it to be a major problem," said Bendixen. "Hispanic votersacross the nation recognize that they can help protect the environmentthrough the personal choices they make." The findings of the groundbreaking poll include strong evidence thatHispanic voters: -Overwhelmingly (80%) said that energy and environmental issues have "alot" or "some" impact on the quality of life and health of their families.These voters have a high level of exposure to toxic sites.-Clearly (more than 90%) feel a moral responsibility to take care of God'screation on Earth, such as forests, oceans, lakes and rivers.-View "energy and global warming" to be one of the two most importantenvironmental problems for their families, with 80% of these votersconsidering it to be a major problem.-Believe strongly (80%) that the government and big oil companies are mostresponsible for the rising price of gasoline and oil in the United States.-Confidently (more than 80%) agree that "shifting to a new 'clean energyeconomy' could create millions of jobs, improve the quality of theenvironment and protect everyone's children."-Recognize that they can help protect the environment through the personalchoices they make. "As a large and important constituency in the U.S., Hispanics can helpcraft solutions and influence key decisions that will create good jobs forHispanic workers and cleaner neighborhoods for their families," said CarlPope, Executive Director of the Sierra Club, which sponsored the poll. "Weknow that many Hispanic neighborhoods suffer disproportionately fromenvironmental pollution and the effects of global warming, so it isparticularly important that this community be fully engaged in the nationaldialogue." "This survey confirms once again that environmental issues play animportant role in the lives of Hispanic families. This is no surprise giventhat minorities are 73 percent more likely to live near air pollutingfacilities," said Congresswoman Hilda L. Solis, Vice Chair of the Energyand Commerce Committee's Subcommittee on Environment and HazardousMaterials. "The good news is that this survey indicates that 90 percent ofall Hispanic surveyed feel a moral responsibility to take action to dotheir part in improving the environment. "I want to thank the Sierra Club for addressing the effects of globalclimate change on the Latino community," said Congressman Raśl M. Grijalva,Chairman, Natural Resources Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, andPublic Lands. "Both energy and climate change issues are rapidly developinginto critical issues to both the American public and the global community.This study will undoubtedly reveal the communal concern for environmentalissues held by Latino voters across the United States." The national poll of 1000 registered Hispanic voters was conducted byprofessionally trained bilingual interviewers in either English or Spanish,depending on the respondent's preference. The margin of error is threepercentage points. ### - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To unsubscribe from the IOWA-TOPICS list, send any message to: [log in to unmask] Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp Sign up to receive Sierra Club Insider, the flagship e-newsletter. Sent out twice a month, it features the Club's latest news and activities. Subscribe and view recent editions at http://www.sierraclub.org/insider/