Too many people in Britain are environmental hypocrites, according to a new survey.

Ninety-two per cent of UK adults say they are concerned about the environment and keen to reduce natural resource use but far fewer are willing to make the necessary lifestyle changes themselves, according to a new survey.

I nstead they expect employers to implement environmentally friendly solutions, Hyder Consulting says.

Fifty-six per cent of people believe employers should source environmentallyfriendly products, but just 28 per cent say they follow this practice in their own lives.

Three quarters (74 per cent) say they expect employers to ensure office buildings are well insulated while just 47 per cent have improved insulation in their own homes.

Similarly, 41 per cent expect employers to switch to green energy tariffs but just eight per cent have done the same.

While a third of those questioned say employers should encourage staff to take public transport to meetings, just 27 per cent say they have increased their personal use of public transport.

Equally, while 86 per cent expect recycling schemes to be introduced in the office, a far lower 63 per cent are recycling waste in their own homes.

Chris Evans, head of environmental services at Hyder Consulting, a London-based group with a major Birmingham presence, said: "While it is encouraging that many people are concerned about the environment and aware of the need to act in a sustainable manner, there is a worrying gap between the actions people implement in their own lives and those they expect to be implemented by employers.

"While UK adults are right to expect that the organisations they work for should act in a sustainable fashion they must also take personal responsibility in making incremental changes to their own lifestyles that will deliver broader environmental benefits for society as a whole.

"This research demonstrates that while many people are taking their environ-mental responsibilities seriously, there is still much that individuals and organisations can do to make simple changes to the way they source and use products and dispose of waste and deliver greater environmental benefits to the country as a whole.

"Switching to green energy tariffs, recycling glass and paper and switching off unneeded lights and reducing water wastage are all simple steps that anyone can make in their lives but if we all took these actions, it would result in a massive difference to the environment."

Hyder Consulting is a leading management and infrastructure consultancy offering multi-discipline planning, engineering design and environmental services.