Spain’s rubbish laws

Los Montesinos – San Miguel

January 13 I have a house at Entre Naranjos, an urbanisation between Los Montesinos and San Miguel. Initially there were only a few hundred properties there and the council provided bins for waste and recycling accordingly. Over the years the urbanisation has grown and now there are several thousand dwellings there, most owned by ‘Brits’ or other Northern Europeans who come here for the winter to avoid the Northern winter weather.

We pay our SUMA and taxes but the waste and re-cycling bins on the site are often overflowing because the council refuse to provide any more bins because there are not enough people on the padrón, but because most of the thousands that live here in the winter are visitors they are not allowed to sign on the Padrón because they do not have ‘Residencia’!

So on the one hand, the council recognise that there are several thousand people here and are happy to take the tens of thousands of euros that we pay in SUMA and other taxes, and yet they won’t provide the services that we pay for because they say that there are not many people here because we are not on the Padrón, and yet they will not let us sign on the Padrón because we do not have ‘Residencia’. And all of this is done in spite of the European Directive that at least 50% of all household waste must be recycled, but without enough recycling bins the recyclable materials go in normal waste bins and to landfill.

What a mess!

MS - a frustrated Brit