As the average cost of gasoline in the country tops $4 a gallon, an increasing number of Americans say it’s time to put energy production ahead of conservation and environmental protection, a new nationwide poll suggests.



The Pew Research Center queried 2,004 adults in mid-June and found that 47 percent said expanding the nation’s energy supply through increased oil drilling, mining and construction of power plants was a higher priority than conservation and regulation. That was up from 35 percent in February. The percentage who believe conservation is a higher priority dropped from 55 percent in February to 45 percent in June.



The authors found a surprising demographic shift in energy policy priority:

Much of the increase in support for energy exploration has come among groups that previously viewed this as a less important priority than energy conservation — young people, liberals, independents, Democrats, women and people who have attended college.

The biggest jump came in the 18-29 age group, whose support for energy production over conservation rose from 26 percent in February to 51 percent in June. Self-described liberals showed a similar leap, from 22 percent in February to 45 percent in June. The only groups for whom domestic production was a lower priority than conservation in the June poll were Republicans (down 6 points) and those over age 65 (down 2 points).



The poll showed an increasing number of Americans (50 percent) favor drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.



What is not apparent in the poll figures is whether the respondents know how long it will take for domestic production to commence and how little it would affect oil prices and the country’s reliance on foreign oil.



If Congress were to lift the ANWR ban in 2008, for example, oil would begin flowing 10 years later, according to a report published in May by the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The net effect on worldwide oil prices? About 75 cents a barrel, The Anchorage Daily News reported at the time.



Lifting the ban on offshore drilling elsewhere in the United States wouldn’t affect world oil prices until around 2030, Business Week pointed out in a story June 20. The advantage at the pump? Maybe 3 or 4 cents a gallon, Time magazine wrote in June.



It’s ironic that the conservation movement, which is poised to make great strides in environmental protection should Democrats take back the White House and extend their control over Congress, "has suddenly found itself on the defensive as high gasoline prices shift the political climate nationwide and trigger defections by longtime supporters," The Los Angeles Times recently wrote.



As the national campaign season wears on with no relief in sight at the pump, voters can probably expect to hear more hot air and empty promises on energy issues from candidates cautiously threading their way through this new political conundrum.