Climate change and the environment has emerged as the second most important issue for voters in Tasmania ahead of the 2022 federal election.

A national survey conducted by Australian Community Media, the publisher of the Sunday Examiner showed 52 per cent of survey respondents in Bass and 54 per cent of survey respondents in Braddon believe climate change will be an integral election issue.

In the past, climate change has simmered in the collective consciousness of voters, but never before has it become as significant an issue as for this election, as the voting public get fed up with Australia's performance on the world stage in this area.

Climate change advocates in Tasmania were unsurprised with the result, saying voters had finally realised that climate change would effect everyone.

Launceston student Gabrielle Dewsbury, who will vote in a federal election for the first time this year, is a former organiser of the School Strike for Climate and said the issue would be how she decided on who to vote for.

"People are starting to realise that climate change is not just an environmental issue, but it's a health issue and an economical issue as well," she said.

Miss Dewsbury said climate change affected was a significant contributor to declining human health, due to the impact of things like floods and fires, which could allow bugs and viruses to flourish.

Soaring temperatures in summer have also forced people to migrate, with many seeking solace in the cooler temperatures of Tasmania.

"Nine million people have died from air pollution across the globe, so it's no longer just simply about how it impacts the environment," she said.

Ms Dewsbury was critical of both parties' climate policies, saying that so far, ahead of an official election campaign, neither had presented clear climate change policies.

"What it shows at the moment is that neither party has put enough focus on the issue."

She said she would like to see both parties commit to net zero emissions by 2030.

"We just can't wait until 2050," she said. "So much technology exists in renewable energy and it's being adopted in Europe, but not in Australia."

The state government should also support grassroots communities in the transition, to ensure that no one gets left behind, Ms Dewsbury said.

While she said action on the issue was vital, she said it didn't really matter which party won the election as pressure would continue to swell from the ground up for action.

Climate Tasmania spokesman David Hamilton echoed those sentiments but he said so far neither party's policy "went far enough" to combat the effects of climate change.

He said both parties should look to include four major pillars in their climate policies, that would drastically cut emissions and transition the country away from fossil fuels.

"Fossil fuels have been good, they are the reason our society has gotten to where it is, but we need to transition away from oil and gas if we have any hope at all of addressing the impacts of climate change," he said.

Climate Change Tasmania believes any climate change policy needs to have bold and decisive action that looks at the impact on society, a phased transition away from fossil fuels in a way that was managed by government.

"Transition away from fossil fuels is going to be difficult and tricky to manage, which is why this needs to be managed by the government, we can't leave it up to industry."

Mr Hamilton said he was not surprised that climate change ranked so highly in the minds of Tasmanian voters.

"Things have gotten worse, and I think people are starting to realise that more needs to be done," he said.

Plastic Free Launceston founder Trish Haesler said while the climate change and war on waste movements had begun at a grassroots level, it had now snowballed and had momentum all on its own.

"When we first started it was hard for us, when we went into schools we'd find that we'd do all the talking; but now when we go into school the kids are asking all the questions, which is fantastic to see," she said.

The growing awareness of waste and rubbish had fed into the climate change debate, and Ms Heusler said there was an immediate and tangible impact.

"We used to do clean-ups and we'd find thousands of plastic straws littered around the place. We did one recently at Riverbend Park - and we only found three," she said.

She said with businesses and local governments on board with plastic free thinking and its impact on climate change, the next step was for governments to take the lead.