In recent months, several Spanish municipalities have decided to overhaul their waste collection services. New concessions, multi-million euro investments, and the introduction of more sustainable systems are driving a transformation aimed at improving efficiency and adapting to environmental requirements. Contract renewals and the arrival of new machinery are some of the most evident signs of this shift.
From north to south, cities like Ourense, Lleida, Alcoy, and Alicante have launched plans to strengthen waste collection and increase staffing levels. The common goal is to modernize this essential service with better resources and greater citizen involvement.
New contracts and increased investments
Most of these municipalities have opted to tender new concessions with higher budgets. For example, the Ourense City Council has awarded the joint venture Eco Auriense a contract worth over €15 million annually for a ten-year term. Similarly, Lleida signed an agreement with Ilnova for a total of €262 million for a decade, while Alcoy has allocated FCC a budget of €3,1 million per year for garbage collection and is also preparing to award the street cleaning contract. These amounts reflect a considerable budgetary effort to meet citizens' needs.
In Alicante, the new contract for textile collection has a budget of €1,6 million over four years and includes incentives to triple the tonnage collected. In Villa de Mazo (La Palma), €128.000 will be allocated to build recycling stations that conceal the containers and reduce their visual impact. Urban aesthetics are also being considered in this modernization.
Door-to-door and more staff
One of the most notable trends is the implementation of door-to-door collection in areas that previously had communal containers. Lleida plans to extend this system to all its industrial parks, eliminating dumping sites that, according to the city council, had become illegal landfills. In Alcoy, the service includes door-to-door collection of commercial cardboard and bulky waste collection in the afternoon . This change requires a larger workforce , and therefore both cities are expanding their staff: Alcoy will increase from 78 to 104 employees, and Lleida will hire 95 new professionals.
In addition, new vehicles and machinery are being added. Ourense has presented sweepers, carts, and tricycles, while Lleida will add 119 vehicles to its fleet. Technology is also being applied to containers , such as the brown container with an electronic lock that will be installed in Alcoy to manage the organic waste fraction.
Towards a more efficient service
The focus on quality isn't limited to the main contractor. In Alhama de Murcia, the town council has commissioned a €12.000 external audit to evaluate street cleaning and waste collection services over three months. This type of analysis helps identify shortcomings and propose improvements. Waste management is becoming more professionalized through tools such as audits and pay-as-you-throw systems.
In short, the initiatives implemented by these municipalities demonstrate that waste collection is undergoing a profound transformation in Spain. The combination of increased investment, new technologies, and more staff points to a more sustainable service, better adapted to current needs. Citizens are the primary beneficiaries of these changes, although there is still work to be done in raising awareness and fostering community involvement.
