Most Austrians want plastic bags banned

The  vast majority of Austrians would support a ban on plastic bags, according to a poll.Viennese researcher Karmasin found that 73 per cent of Austrians would back such a law, while only 24 per cent rejected the suggestion. The agency said the number of supporters of a ban on the ecologically harmful bags seems to be the on the rise as only 64 per cent spoke out in favour of a law prohibiting their use in March 2009. Karmasin interviewed around 500 Austrians for weekly magazine profil.There are currently no legal restrictions on the usage and sale of plastic bags in Austria. Large plastic bags cost around 25 Eurocents in supermarkets while small ones are free. Fashion shops and various other stores offer free of charge plastic bags to customers, but many use paper bags as well.Italy has become the latest country to ban plastic bags. Only biologically degradable bags are allowed in the South European country since the beginning of this year. Activists have identified plastic bags as a significant threat to the environment.News that more than seven out of 10 Austrians are in favour of a ban of plastic bags comes just days after it was announced that Austrian households, factories and traffic in the country caused a carbon dioxide equivalent pollution of 80.1 million tons in 2009. This was a year on year drop of 6.8 million tons. The annual amount may however increase again in the coming years as the industry is recovering from the economic downturn.