FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Responses to the Spring 2006 Arkansas Omnibus Survey show that residents throughout the state are worried about the effects of the current drought. In fact, according to a random sample of Arkansans who were interviewed by researchers at the University of Arkansas Survey Research Center, 98.3 percent of Arkansans expect the drought to significantly affect at least one of these areas: drinking water supplies, agriculture, industries other than agriculture, recreation and tourism, and residents’ lawns and gardens.

“The state has had some relief from the drought since this survey was taken,” said Molly Longstreth, director of the research center. “But I think these responses demonstrate the level of concern among Arkansans about the drought, as well as how much they’re willing to change the way they do things to counter its effects.”

As Longstreth mentioned, Arkansans have taken many actions to conserve water. Specifically, survey results indicated that:

• Six out of 10 Arkansans have reduced lawn watering and used a car wash rather than washing their cars at home.

• four out 10 Arkansans have installed low-flow toilets.

• half of the state’s residents have reduced water leaks.

• one out of every three Arkansans has reduced toilet flushing.

Other measures to conserve water were less popular but show that some Arkansans have taken even bigger steps to cut down on the amount of water they use. For example,

• Two of every 10 Arkansans have increased the use of drought-tolerant plants in their yards, and the same percentage have reused or recycled water to conserve it.

• Fifteen percent of those polled have installed a more efficient garden-irrigation system.

• Four percent of Arkansans have re-engineered water-intensive processes, and 3.7 percent have conducted a home, farm or business water audit to conserve water.

Overall, nine out of 10 Arkansans had taken on at least one measure to conserve water, and 15 percent have done things other than those listed above. Longstreth said some Arkansans have done all of the actions included in the survey.

“The high percentage of people who have taken action to conserve water is rather surprising but may indicate an appreciation for water supplies in Arkansas and a feeling of personal responsibility for them,” Longstreth said.

Presumably, Arkansans have changed their behavior and taken these actions because they think the drought will significantly affect water supply and industries that are critical to the health of the state’s economy. Survey results revealed that almost 7 out of every 10 Arkansans expect the drought to significantly affect drinking water supplies. More than three-quarters of the state’s residents expect the drought to significantly affect agriculture in the state, and four out of 10 Arkansans expect the drought to significantly affect industries in Arkansas other than agriculture.

The Arkansas Omnibus Survey is a service-oriented poll designed to measure Arkansans’ perceptions about a variety of topics, including economic conditions, health care and other issues or events that affect local and state residents. For example, the previous surveys have gauged Arkansans’ sentiments about rising gas prices and the effects of Hurricane Katrina. Each survey also contains basic questions from the Index of Consumer Sentiment, a national poll that measures consumers’ attitudes about current and future economic conditions.

Conducted in both English and Spanish, omnibus surveys use random-digit dialing to contact a wide sample of residents from nearly every county in Arkansas. Data are collected via a sophisticated, state-of-the-art, computer-assisted telephone interviewing system. Interviewers are highly trained, and information received during the process remains confidential. Longstreth said the center’s findings are accurate within a range of 4 percentage points.

Established in 1998, the UA Survey Research Center conducts surveys and evaluations for a variety of organizations and is dedicated to providing high-quality, nonbiased information. For more information on the center and its research, go to http://survey.uark.edu/ .