WASHINGTON—An Epoch Times survey of more than 28,000 readers has found that 96 percent disagree with putting a stop to construction on the Keystone XL oil pipeline.
“The pipeline would reduce environmental risks of alternative means of transport. Stopping it unilaterally was an affront to Canada. It will also increase our dependence on foreign sources of energy, especially from extremist regimes,” David from Michigan wrote.
“You cannot kill the entire energy sector without a suitable replacement. The executive orders of Biden are a collection of irresponsible, knee-jerk responses to Trump’s policies without any consideration for logic, reason or common sense,” another respondent wrote.
“I prefer an independent natural resource country,” Mary from Oregon said. “Biden made a truly bad decision for the USA and Canada, mainly to punish people for Trump support. He did not go half way ... but chopping heads for the sake of increasing imports from communist countries and those that would take advantage of our people and country.”
Suspension of New Drilling Permits
A further 92 percent of survey respondents disagree with the suspension of new oil and gas drilling permits on federal land.Many said permits should be considered on a case-by-case basis, rather than a blanket ban. Others said the federal government should pass the land back to states.
“It has been demonstrated that this can be done using a very small footprint in a way that is not environmentally harmful nor destructive. Again, the administration is appeasing the radical green element of the party,” a Texan stated.
“These resources are owned by all citizens of the United States, not the government or one political party. Restricting development on our citizen-owned lands reduces revenue to support our country and costs people their jobs,” said a respondent from Pennsylvania.
Energy Independence
Close to 98 percent of respondents said the United States should be energy-independent.“As much as possible, but commerce with allies is also a positive,” wrote Christine from Arizona.
“Everything should be American-made. We need to be independent of all foreign countries for all our needs. Trade should be a choice, not a requirement or desperate need,” stated a New Yorker.
“Why would we buy oil from somewhere else? This does nothing to help the environment,” an Ohio respondent wrote.
Electric Vehicles
Eighty percent of respondents said they disagree with Biden’s order to replace all 650,000 federal vehicles with electric vehicles.“Eventually, I think electric may be possible but this idea would require a large expenditure of taxpayer money, particularly if federal employees get to use the vehicle for personal use,” said Barbara from Pennsylvania.
“Let the [electric vehicle] development move in line with economic demand rather than by political demand,” stated Carl from Texas.
“I would first like to know the impact of these cars on our taxes, how and where those huge batteries will be disposed of, and how the electricity to recharge all of them will be provided. It will require a lot more hours for federal employees to charge their vehicles if they are on the road. Overall, I am skeptical of the plan,” said Joni from Oregon.
Environmental Protection
Almost all respondents said they agree that environmental protection is important, although it needs to be done with common sense and a balanced approach.When asked at what level environmental protection should be handled, most chose the state level, with national next, then county, and global last. Many said it should be handled at the individual level. Respondents were able to choose more than one answer.
“I think that all decisions should be made as locally as possible. I believe that America is an environmental leader in the world and that the world has no business telling us how to manage our environmental issues until they get their act together,” Nathan Evans from Maryland said.
“It is the duty of mankind to love and care for the land in our keeping. This is as essential as protection of life, liberty and freedom. The best management of land is done by those who actually live there,” said Joshua Bouley from Wisconsin.
“Federal and global agencies are not able to function without tremendous waste. State agencies are closer to the problems,” stated Laura Stasy from California.
“We as a nation should focus on our national issues. We can encourage other nations to protect the environment, however, the reality is China is the biggest polluter in the world and China has no intention of changing their current direction,” said a respondent from Washington.
“Every country should protect its environment, that’s obvious common sense, as you don’t burn your house down to stay warm. However, we should not needlessly cripple our economy for negligible or unproven energy practices as we allow China and India to pollute wholesale as they ramp up their manufacturing base,” said Rick from Michigan.
All 50 states were represented in the survey fairly consistently per capita.
