New rules to reduce, recycle and better manage waste

Automatic summary, not yet reviewed

1. The law sets a priority order for treating waste: first avoid generating it, then prepare it for reuse, recycle it, recover it and, only at the end, dispose of it. Public authorities must use economic tools to enforce this.
2. Local councils must collect separately, in addition to paper, metal, plastic and glass, biowaste, textiles, used cooking oil, household hazardous waste and bulky waste, with deadlines between 2022 and 2024.
3. The law sets waste reduction targets: 13% less by 2025 and 15% less by 2030 compared to 2010. It also aims to halve food waste in retail and consumption by 2030.
4. Single-use plastic products such as cutlery, plates, straws and expanded polystyrene cups are banned, and others, such as drink cups, must be charged for starting in 2023.
5. A tax of €0.45 per kilo of non-recycled plastic in non-reusable packaging is created, paid by those who manufacture, import or buy it within the European Union.
6. Another tax is created for sending waste to landfills or incinerating it, with rates from €0 to €40 per ton depending on the type of waste and facility. The revenue goes to the autonomous communities.
7. Product manufacturers can be required to pay for and organize the management of waste from their products, with transparency requirements, financial guarantees and audits of the systems that do this.
8. Local councils must set up, within three years, a specific, non-deficit fee for the waste service that reflects its real cost and can reward home composting or separate collection.

Who it affects

• Citizens and households: They must separate their waste at the source under local ordinances and pay fees that reflect the real cost of the service.
• Local councils: They must organize new separate collections, create asbestos registers and set specific fees for the waste service.
• Companies that produce or manage waste: New obligations for permits, notifications, storage, labeling and plans to minimize hazardous waste.
• Manufacturers and importers of plastic packaging: They pay the special tax of €0.45 per kilo of non-recycled plastic and cover the cost of managing waste from their products.
• Retailers and the hospitality sector: They must charge for single-use plastic cups, accept reusable containers and offer free unpackaged water.

Words worth knowing

Biorresiduo (biowaste)

Biodegradable waste from gardens, kitchens and food, such as food scraps or garden trimmings.

Responsabilidad ampliada del productor (extended producer responsibility)

The duty of whoever makes or sells a product to pay for, and in some cases organize, the management of the waste that product generates.

Preparación para la reutilización (preparation for reuse)

Checking, cleaning or repairing a product that has become waste so it can be used again without further processing.

Fin de la condición de residuo (end-of-waste status)

A situation where recycled waste meets certain requirements and stops being considered waste, becoming a regular product.

Coincineración (co-incineration)

Using waste as fuel in an industrial facility that also produces energy.

It summarizes the law as published in the BOE. It is written by artificial intelligence and may contain mistakes: the official text is what counts. Read the official text · How we make summaries