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LIFESTYLE

38% Say Earth Day Has Helped Raise Environmental Awareness

Today marks the 42nd year that Earth Day has been celebrated, but Americans are closely divided over whether the informal annual holiday has raised the environmental consciousness of their fellow countrymen.

A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 38% of American Adults think Earth Day has helped to raise environmental awareness. However, even more (42%) disagree and say it has not made Americans more environmentally aware. One-in-five adults (21%) aren't sure. (To see survey question wording, click here.) 

But then only 45% believe Americans are environmentally aware. 

Still, 56% of Americans rate Earth Day as at least somewhat important, with 29% who regard it as Very Important. Thirty-nine percent (39%) see the annual celebration as unimportant, including 16% who say it is Not At All Important.

Only 18% of adults plan to do something special to celebrate Earth Day, while 70% do not. Eleven percent (11%) are undecided. This shows little change from since April 2008.

(Want a free daily e-mail update? If it's in the news, it's in our polls). Rasmussen Reports updates are also available on Twitter or Facebook. 

 The survey of 1,000 Adults was conducted on April 16-17, 2011 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

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