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Counties most concerned about climate change in Illinois

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Nationally, 72% of Americans believe global warming is happening. But when public opinion researchers zoom in on Americans, they find that attitudes and opinions about climate change can vary drastically from county to county—even when those counties are next door. Public opinion factors into how policy-makers respond to climate change, including taking steps to reduce CO2 levels and mitigate harmful impacts already being experienced. Stacker compiled a list of counties most concerned about climate change in Illinois using data from the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication. Counties are ranked by the percent of residents that are worried about global warming.

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#50. Logan County

- Worried about global warming: 54.0%
--- 13.7% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 57.1%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 39.2%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 30.2%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 52.7%
- Total population: 23,396 people
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#49. Grundy County

- Worried about global warming: 54.1%
--- 13.6% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 57.1%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 37.4%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 28.8%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 52.5%
- Total population: 37,784 people
3 / 50

#48. Brown County

- Worried about global warming: 54.2%
--- 13.5% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 55.6%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 39.4%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 27.7%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 53.7%
- Total population: 5,487 people
4 / 50

#47. Adams County

- Worried about global warming: 54.4%
--- 13.4% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 56.5%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 37.5%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 31.2%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 52.9%
- Total population: 51,166 people
5 / 50

#46. Fulton County

- Worried about global warming: 54.7%
--- 13.1% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 56.0%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 37.9%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 28.8%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 52.9%
- Total population: 28,131 people

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6 / 50

#45. Henderson County

- Worried about global warming: 54.8%
--- 12.9% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 56.2%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 37.4%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 30.2%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 53.4%
- Total population: 5,551 people
7 / 50

#44. Bond County

- Worried about global warming: 54.9%
--- 12.9% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 57.4%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 39.7%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 31.7%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 53.9%
- Total population: 13,429 people
8 / 50

#43. Schuyler County

- Worried about global warming: 55.0%
--- 12.8% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 58.0%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 39.9%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 31.7%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 54.8%
- Total population: 5,649 people
9 / 50

#42. Morgan County

- Worried about global warming: 55.0%
--- 12.7% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 57.1%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 39.1%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 29.5%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 53.9%
- Total population: 27,757 people
10 / 50

#41. Piatt County

- Worried about global warming: 55.0%
--- 12.7% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 58.0%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 36.4%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 30.6%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 53.3%
- Total population: 12,703 people

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11 / 50

#40. Henry County

- Worried about global warming: 55.1%
--- 12.6% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 58.3%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 37.3%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 29.0%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 55.2%
- Total population: 38,251 people
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#39. Williamson County

- Worried about global warming: 55.2%
--- 12.6% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 57.7%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 37.4%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 30.2%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 53.1%
- Total population: 52,419 people
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#38. Mercer County

- Worried about global warming: 55.2%
--- 12.6% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 56.2%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 36.5%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 28.6%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 54.6%
- Total population: 12,226 people
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#37. Vermilion County

- Worried about global warming: 55.2%
--- 12.5% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 57.3%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 39.1%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 27.0%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 55.7%
- Total population: 59,124 people
15 / 50

#36. Pulaski County

- Worried about global warming: 55.4%
--- 12.3% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 57.8%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 41.4%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 24.9%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 54.8%
- Total population: 4,304 people

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#35. Douglas County

- Worried about global warming: 55.5%
--- 12.3% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 56.6%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 40.4%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 32.5%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 53.9%
- Total population: 14,709 people
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#34. Lee County

- Worried about global warming: 55.6%
--- 12.2% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 57.8%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 38.6%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 28.6%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 54.2%
- Total population: 27,580 people
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#33. Ogle County

- Worried about global warming: 56.1%
--- 11.7% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 58.9%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 39.7%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 30.8%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 54.8%
- Total population: 39,466 people
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#32. Menard County

- Worried about global warming: 56.5%
--- 11.3% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 57.8%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 37.9%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 32.2%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 55.6%
- Total population: 9,612 people
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#31. LaSalle County

- Worried about global warming: 56.5%
--- 11.2% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 58.8%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 39.8%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 28.5%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 56.9%
- Total population: 86,024 people

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#30. Bureau County

- Worried about global warming: 56.8%
--- 11.0% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 57.1%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 38.7%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 30.4%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 54.4%
- Total population: 26,025 people
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#29. Jo Daviess County

- Worried about global warming: 56.8%
--- 10.9% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 60.0%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 39.8%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 33.1%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 55.0%
- Total population: 17,463 people
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#28. Coles County

- Worried about global warming: 56.9%
--- 10.9% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 60.0%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 40.6%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 33.3%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 55.9%
- Total population: 42,096 people
24 / 50

#27. Macon County

- Worried about global warming: 57.0%
--- 10.7% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 58.6%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 39.3%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 27.9%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 56.9%
- Total population: 82,007 people
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#26. Cass County

- Worried about global warming: 57.3%
--- 10.5% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 58.1%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 40.7%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 28.8%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 55.0%
- Total population: 9,536 people

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26 / 50

#25. Warren County

- Worried about global warming: 57.5%
--- 10.2% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 60.2%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 41.0%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 31.7%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 56.5%
- Total population: 13,390 people
27 / 50

#24. Madison County

- Worried about global warming: 57.9%
--- 9.9% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 59.0%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 39.4%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 30.0%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 55.6%
- Total population: 206,628 people
28 / 50

#23. Whiteside County

- Worried about global warming: 58.0%
--- 9.8% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 59.4%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 41.0%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 29.3%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 56.4%
- Total population: 43,540 people
29 / 50

#22. Alexander County

- Worried about global warming: 58.0%
--- 9.8% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 60.0%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 43.4%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 24.7%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 57.5%
- Total population: 4,803 people
30 / 50

#21. Kankakee County

- Worried about global warming: 59.2%
--- 8.6% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 61.9%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 42.3%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 28.7%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 57.7%
- Total population: 85,130 people

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31 / 50

#20. Stephenson County

- Worried about global warming: 59.3%
--- 8.5% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 60.9%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 42.1%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 31.9%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 57.1%
- Total population: 35,358 people
32 / 50

#19. McDonough County

- Worried about global warming: 60.3%
--- 7.4% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 63.1%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 42.3%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 35.0%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 57.7%
- Total population: 25,255 people
33 / 50

#18. McHenry County

- Worried about global warming: 60.5%
--- 7.3% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 62.1%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 41.9%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 32.2%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 55.5%
- Total population: 234,368 people
34 / 50

#17. Boone County

- Worried about global warming: 60.6%
--- 7.2% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 61.6%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 42.8%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 30.6%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 58.8%
- Total population: 40,027 people
35 / 50

#16. Knox County

- Worried about global warming: 60.8%
--- 6.9% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 62.7%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 42.5%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 30.7%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 59.3%
- Total population: 40,518 people

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#15. Peoria County

- Worried about global warming: 60.9%
--- 6.9% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 60.6%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 43.6%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 29.7%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 60.5%
- Total population: 139,284 people
37 / 50

#14. Sangamon County

- Worried about global warming: 61.2%
--- 6.5% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 64.2%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 40.7%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 31.0%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 59.6%
- Total population: 152,675 people
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#13. Rock Island County

- Worried about global warming: 62.2%
--- 5.5% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 62.8%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 43.5%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 29.8%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 59.2%
- Total population: 111,737 people
39 / 50

#12. Jackson County

- Worried about global warming: 62.4%
--- 5.3% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 66.9%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 44.5%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 33.3%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 63.2%
- Total population: 47,332 people
40 / 50

#11. Will County

- Worried about global warming: 62.5%
--- 5.3% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 66.2%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 45.1%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 30.0%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 62.0%
- Total population: 514,976 people

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41 / 50

#10. St. Clair County

- Worried about global warming: 63.3%
--- 4.5% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 67.0%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 45.6%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 28.1%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 64.5%
- Total population: 200,498 people
42 / 50

#9. DeKalb County

- Worried about global warming: 63.3%
--- 4.5% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 64.7%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 43.5%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 32.9%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 59.6%
- Total population: 81,843 people
43 / 50

#8. McLean County

- Worried about global warming: 63.7%
--- 4.1% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 65.1%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 43.0%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 33.4%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 62.8%
- Total population: 135,227 people
44 / 50

#7. Winnebago County

- Worried about global warming: 64.0%
--- 3.8% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 63.8%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 45.5%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 29.0%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 60.1%
- Total population: 217,729 people
45 / 50

#6. Kane County

- Worried about global warming: 65.1%
--- 2.7% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 66.4%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 45.0%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 31.9%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 62.3%
- Total population: 393,677 people

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46 / 50

#5. Kendall County

- Worried about global warming: 66.1%
--- 1.7% lower than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 66.3%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 44.6%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 31.9%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 64.0%
- Total population: 89,717 people
47 / 50

#4. DuPage County

- Worried about global warming: 68.5%
--- 0.8% higher than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 66.5%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 46.2%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 35.6%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 66.0%
- Total population: 716,577 people
48 / 50

#3. Lake County

- Worried about global warming: 69.1%
--- 1.4% higher than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 69.3%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 46.7%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 34.6%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 67.9%
- Total population: 529,928 people
49 / 50

#2. Champaign County

- Worried about global warming: 69.9%
--- 2.1% higher than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 71.4%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 49.9%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 37.6%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 66.4%
- Total population: 170,340 people
50 / 50

#1. Cook County

- Worried about global warming: 73.4%
--- 5.6% higher than Illinois average
- Agree that global warming is affecting weather: 73.2%
- Think global warming will harm them personally: 57.2%
- Hear about global warming in the media at least weekly: 37.2%
- Think Congress should be doing more to address global warming: 69.6%
- Total population: 4,053,168 people

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