ACT residents back national bag ban

After a year of taking their own bags to the supermarket, two-thirds of ACT residents believe the territory's plastic bag ban should be imposed nationally.
 
The ACT government banned lightweight plastic bags from the region in November 2011.

A survey of ACT shoppers in late 2012 found 84 per cent now take their own bags to the shops all or most of the time.

This is a big increase from a year earlier, when more than half of those surveyed said they didn't take their own bags when they went shopping before the ban was put in place.

Seven out of 10 didn't want the bag ban overturned but a similar number didn't want it extended to cover all types of plastic bags either.

Currently, thicker plastic bags, such as those used in clothing stores, are still allowed in the ACT.

When asked about extending the ban across the country, 66 per cent supported a national ban.

Those aged between 31 and 50 were most likely to support a national approach, with about three-quarters of that age group saying they would be in favour.

But there was less support for the idea of a national levy on plastic bags, with only 54 per cent in favour. Almost all those surveyed want all plastic bags to be biodegradable.

ACT Environment Minister Simon Corbell said the survey, part of an interim review of the bag ban, gave a good snapshot of community attitudes.

At the end of 2013 the government will look more closely at trends of plastic bag use and whether the amount going to landfill has been reduced.