On February 7th, Colorado College's State of the Rockies Project released the results of their third annual "Conservation in the West Poll". The poll was a bipartisan operation, pairing polling companies from both political parties to conduct a survey of 2400 westerners from six western states on their feelings towards energy and conservation policy.The overall findings suggested a disparity between public opinion and current policy decisions, which is something that campaigning politicians should pay close attention to. Overall findings showed that 91% of those polled are in agreement that public lands are an essential part of their state's economy, 79% believe that they significantly contribute to their quality of life, and the 71% adamantly oppose the sale of public land. In the energy sector, opinion points overwhelmingly towards support for increased renewable investment. Solar energy investment was supported by 74% of those polled in Arizona and 56% in Colorado (where it tied with wind) and New Mexico. We will be keeping an eye on how western politicians incorporate this poll data and we'll be watching The President's State of the Union Address tonight to hear what he has to say about national energy policy. For more information about this poll and it's results, check out this New York Times Green Blog article on the results, or see the raw data for yourself at the State of the Rockies Project's website.