As the Pittsburgh region continues its ascent, regularly ranking as one of the nation’s most livable cities, maintaining and improving the region will require attention to a key long-term asset: the environment.
Across America and the globe, mobility between regions and nations has become commonplace, and people decide where they want to live and why. Along with jobs, family and a variety of amenities and attributes, environmental quality is emerging as a key factor in the calculus of which cities will attract the talented people whose energy and efforts will shape and build the future.
While the Pittsburgh region’s environment has improved dramatically since its “Smoky City” era, we still face significant challenges including improving air quality, repairing an aged water and sewer system, and ensuring that industry— including the Marcellus Shale—maintains a healthy balance with the region’s environment.
In order to better understand what’s important to our region’s residents about the environment— their behaviors and attitudes—we present the 2013 Pittsburgh Regional Environment Survey.
In this random and representative telephone survey—using land lines and cell phones—we have posed more than 80 questions to regional residents, gauging their views and habits on a number of environment-related topics, including air quality, water quality, conservation, the role of individuals, business and the government in the stewardship of the environment, and the balance between the economy and the environment.
We surveyed more than 400 residents of Allegheny County and more than 400 residents of the six surrounding counties of the metropolitan statistical area: Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Fayette, Washington and Westmoreland counties. By this method, we are able to compare views and behaviors between the region’s core—Allegheny County—and its surrounding counties.
This is the most in-depth and methodologically sound environmental survey to have been undertaken to date in Greater Pittsburgh. And aside from lending greater knowledge of our residents’ actions, understanding, and views regarding the environment, we hope that the information in this survey contributes to more-informed dialogue and decision-making regarding the region’s future.
Survey questions involve a blend of questions created by a team of local environmental experts and questions from other local and national surveys, which allows Pittsburgh responses to be compared with responses across the country. The survey was funded by PittsburghTODAY through its philanthropic supporters and by the University of Pittsburgh’s University Center for Social and Urban Research.
In the pages to come, in narrative journalism and in graphics, we highlight the survey results.
To download and view a PDF version of The Pittsburgh Regional Environment Survey, click here. Separate sections of the survey are listed below.