A poll of Michigan residents suggests there would be high public support for government assistance to help farmers adapt to climate change, according to three researchers from Michigan State U. Seventy percent of respondents said they backed federal and state action for agriculture, roughly 20 points higher than backing for government mitigation of climate change.
“A large majority of Michigan residents support government action in assisting farmers to adapt to climate change, especially compared to the more modest support for adaptation intervention when the sector of the economy was not specified,” said Gi-Eu Lee, Scott Loveridge and Julie Winkler of MSU in Choices, an agricultural economics journal.
The poll was conducted from mid-February through mid-April 2015, including a two-week warm spell in March. Support for government action, whether for agriculture or in general, was highest during the first half of the warm spell. It fell sharply in the second week and then recovered, but not to levels as high as before the heat wave. “The influence of short-term temperature shocks on public attitudes is more complicated than generally expected,” say the researchers.
Support for assistance to agriculture was similar whether aid would come from the state or federal government and whether it would go to fruit and vegetable growers or to corn and soybean farmers. Michigan is a major producer of row crops and fruits and vegetables.
“Because of its diverse agriculture, the state of Michigan is a useful location for exploring the opinions of residents toward government involvement in helping local farmers adapt to climate change,” say Lee, Loveridge and Winkler.