Climate of the Nation survey shows growing support for net zero emissions by 2050 and rapid phase-out of coal power

Australians are increasingly concerned about droughts and floods, extinctions and water shortages associated with climate change, and most people think all levels of government aren’t doing enough to combat the effects of global warming, according to new research.

The annual Climate of the Nation survey, which has been tracking Australian attitudes to climate change for more than a decade, finds concern about droughts and flooding has risen from 74% of the survey in 2017 to 81% in 2019.

Concern about climate-related extinctions – an issue highlighted dramatically in May when a major scientific report warned that a million species across the world faced extinction – has risen from 71% in 2017 to 78% in the 2019 survey, while concern about water shortages, an issue front of mind as a consequence of Australia’s prolonged drought, has increased from 67% to 78%.

Australian Medical Association declares climate change a health emergency Read more

Public sentiment about phasing out coal has also shifted in the past few years. In 2017 65% of the survey thought coal power stations should be phased out gradually to help manage the costs of the transition, but the percentage has dropped to 52% in 2019. The percentage of people believing the shift from coal to clean energy needs to be accelerated, even if the transition costs more in the short term, has increased from 19% in 2017 to 26% in 2019.

There has also been an increase in the percentage of people in the survey arguing that Australia should completely end coal-fired power generation within the next 10 years. In 2017 30% of the survey agreed, and in 2019 39% agreed.

In Queensland – where the future of coal was a significant issue in the May federal election – 49% of the sample thought coal power stations should be phased out gradually and 24% said as soon as possible.

• Sign up to receive the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning

Just over half the national sample, 51%, said they would support a moratorium on new coalmines (including 49% of Liberal voters and 53% of Labor voters).

While parliamentary Nationals are the most vocal supporters of the coal industry, the survey suggests their voting constituency is split, with 48% supporting a moratorium, 40% opposing it and 12% undecided. It’s a similar picture for One Nation, another vocal supporter of coal in Canberra – 41% of One Nation supporters supported a moratorium, 36% opposed one, and 22% undecided.

The annual survey, conducted by YouGov/Galaxy, has assessed attitudes to climate change since 2007. The now defunct Climate Institute began the series, and it is now managed by the progressive thinktank the Australia Institute. The survey is national and it has a margin of error of plus or minus 2%.

The research will be launched in Canberra on Tuesday by the independent who unseated Tony Abbott in the May election, Zali Steggall, in part on a platform of climate action.

“Australians are rightly concerned about more extreme heatwaves, droughts and bushfires and they want the Morrison government to show leadership on climate change and do more to prepare for the impacts that are already locked in,” Steggall said.

“This latest report shows that Australians support far more ambitious climate and energy policies than the federal government is currently delivering.”

The 2019 survey found that 77% of respondents agreed that climate change is happening (equal to the percentage in 2016), and 61% said warming is caused by humans. For context, 64% of the sample agreed climate change was happening in 2012, 19% weren’t sure and 17% said it wasn’t happening. Now it is 77% agreement, 11% unsure and 12% said it isn’t happening.

‘Dead things everywhere’: is Australia facing the summer from hell? Read more

Just under half the sample, 48%, said climate change is already causing more heatwaves and hot days – a nine-point increase in a year – and just over half the sample (51%, up from 43% a year ago) thought climate change is behind the melting of the polar ice caps.

More than half the sample, 64%, wanted Australia to adopt a target of net zero emissions by 2050, and 56% of the sample wanted Australia to limit global warming to 1.5C.

The survey indicates nuclear energy, which has been revived as a prospect by some Morrison government MPs, remains divisive with voters. Only one in five put nuclear in their top three preferred energy sources, and 59% of the survey put nuclear in their bottom three.

Breaking down the responses by demographics, women were more worried about climate change than men and, speaking generally, young people were more worried than respondents aged over 55.

Looking at perceptions in the city versus perceptions in regional Australia, people in metropolitan areas were more likely to agree that coal plants should be closed and replaced with cleaner alternatives (64% to 55%), and city dwellers were more likely to support a moratorium on new mines than regional Australians (55% to 46%).

People in the regions were more aware than their city counterparts that Australia is a signatory to the Paris agreement (62% to 57%) and more likely to blame the energy companies for high power prices (64% to 53%).

The climate and energy director at the Australia Institute, Richie Merzian, said of a looming UN climate summit in New York: “The public want to see the Australian government take a leadership role when it comes to global action on climate change.”