Shanghai citizens top of the form about water quality and food safety

Shanghai citizens are keenly aware of what environmental protection involves, especially when it concerns water quality and food safety. 

According to a survey report issued by Shanghai Jiao Tong University on Tuesday the city's residents have more knowledge on the matter than anywhere else in the country.

Shanghai citizens also showed a 7 percent higher than average confidence in the local government’s efforts to improve the environment.

According to the survey, which is based on nearly 4,000 questionnaires collected from 35 cities around the country, 46.8 percent people aren't satisfied with the environment quality of their cities, up 6.5 percent compared to two years ago.

Half of those surveyed in Shanghai expressed concern about water quality, while 63 percent worried about food safety, respectively 12 percent and 19 percent higher than the nationwide average.

Shanghai citizens are better informed and have higher life expectation and better environmental protection consciousness compared to people living in the second and third tier cities, said Zhong Yang, director of Shanghai Jiao Tong University’s Center of Survey and Opinion Research.

Zhong also pointed out that Shanghai citizens have a much better knowledge about air pollutant PM2.5 particles compared to the rest of the country — with 76 percent of those surveyed in Shanghai knowing the basic facts of the air pollutant, compared to the national average of 54.2 percent.

Shanghai started issuing the average density of PM2.5 — the tiny particles in the air that are hazardous to health — in 2012, one of the earliest places in the country to do so.

The report also showed that 86 percent of Shanghai citizens surveyed support the idea of banning fireworks (compared with 80.8 percent nationwide) and 92 percent are willing to take their own shopping bags instead of buying plastic bags from vendors (81.3 percent nationwide).

“Despite the higher requirements of environment quality, Shanghai citizens are also showing better confidence in the local government,” said Zhong.