The environment is the fourth top concern among the Chinese public, after medical care, employment and income gap, a new report said on Monday.

The yearlong survey of 3,001 residents aged 15 to 69, focusing on the public's environmental awareness, was released here by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

Of the respondents from 20 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions, 10.2 percent named environmental pollution as the principal social problem facing the country, while 9.1 percent considered it the second most important issue. About 13.2 percent listed it third in importance.

The survey team, after comprehensive calculation, ranked the state of the environment fourth among Chinese people's most concerned social problems, followed by corruption, social security, housing prices and education costs, the report said.

It also found 81.1 percent received information about environmental protection from TV and radio and 47.3 from reading. Only 13.5 percent came from government publicity activities, 10.7 from schools and 7.1 from non-governmental organizations.

(Xinhua News Agency April 8, 2008)