The Team at the Town Hall has been studying best practice in other areas as many requirements have changed since the contract was last put out to tender. The basis of the tender is that the services must be improved and reduce the impact of waste on the environment. To this end the cost of the contract was only weighted as 35%, while environmental matters were given a weighting of 65%.

In future there will be a container restricted to organic waste and, in order to ensure that the correct protocols are followed, there will be environmental education for all households. Thus separation of waste will be enhanced, allowing for more effective recycling.

The company who won the tender process is called Tetma (Técnicas y Tratamientos Medioambientales), however, the incumbent company has challenged this and this is being reviewed at a tribunal. The Town Hall hopes to be able to initiate the new contract in September.

The key targets are:

• Total renovation of the container islands, which will be more accessible, more visually integrated, with better maintenance and with a chip system that will allow the company to know when they are full and not have to go around with trucks unnecessarily. “This is very important at the level of efficiency for a town with three urban centres and a scattered one like ours,” Mata said.
• Incorporation of the fifth container only for organic waste.
• Renovation of all the bins, incorporating compartmented bins in the most tourist areas.
• Modernisation of trucks.
• Improved management of the eco-park, with more hours, more capacity and its computerization, as well as the incorporation of a mobile eco-park.
• Radical change in the management of the Green Points, which will have surveillance cameras and will be closed with an access control system so that each inhabitant goes to the one that corresponds to him by area of ​​residence. The method for this has yet to be made completely clear. The fine detail will be explained before the new system is implemented.
• Implementation of a strengthened systemt for the hotel industry and large surfaces; a system similar to door-to-door for large waste producers, with the aim of giving them a better service and taking pressure off the containers.
• Creation of a specific team for environmental awareness, information and education tasks, both to promote recycling and the correct use of public resources, good practices for professional sectors or in the face of anti-social behavior related to animal excreta, for example. There will be three environmental educators who work specifically for cultural change. In addition, at the level of environmental education, 2% of the budget will be allocated each year to campaigns and pilot experiences. There will also be six composters that can be used in schools or wherever deemed appropriate.