Cantabria and Bárcena de Cicero sign waste collection agreement

The Official Gazette of Cantabria publishes this Friday, August 28, 2026, in issue number 166, the resolution providing for the publication of the agreement between the Administration of the Autonomous Community of Cantabria and the municipality of Bárcena de Cicero for the provision of municipal waste collection and transport services. The resolution, signed in Santander on August 21 by the Secretary General of Development, Housing, Territorial Planning and Environment, Ana Belén Ruiz San Millán, bears the official reference CVE-2026-6712.

The agreement responds to the City Council’s inability to take charge of the service due to a lack of necessary means, and is framed within Law 8/1993, of November 18, on the Urban Waste Management Plan of Cantabria, which obliges the regional Government to provide support to local entities that request it. The agreement is inscribed within the framework of Law 7/1985 on the Bases of Local Regime, Law 7/2022 on waste and contaminated soils, and Law 40/2015 on the Legal Regime of the Public Sector.

Signatories and background

The agreement is signed, on one hand, by the Councilor for Development, Housing, Territorial Planning and Environment, Roberto Media Sainz, representing the Government of Cantabria and with authorization from the Governing Council of February 12, 2026; and, on the other, by the mayor-president of the City Council, Gumersindo Ranero Lavín, empowered by the agreement of the municipal Plenary of December 29, 2025.

The agreement is based on the framework agreement signed on March 27, 2025, between the Autonomous Community and the Federation of Municipalities of Cantabria to regulate collaboration in the provision of these services. The provision will be channeled through MARE (Medio Ambiente, Agua, Residuos y Energía de Cantabria, S.A., M.P.), a public commercial company attached to the Department and considered a personified own means of the regional Administration.

Included services

The Autonomous Community assumes the so-called “low-level collection,” that is, the collection and transport of waste to transfer plants or final management plants. The services, detailed in Annex I of the agreement, include:

• Collection of the residual fraction and bulky waste and their transport to the plant.
• Collection of bio-waste, with domestic composting for municipalities of fewer than 1,000 inhabitants and separate curbside collection.
• Separate collection of packaging and cardboard, including door-to-door collection of commercial cardboard.
• Separate collection of textile waste, agricultural plastics, and used vegetable oils.

The list is illustrative and may be expanded by mutual agreement. The service also includes awareness and communication campaigns carried out by the Department through MARE.

Economic regime and monitoring

As consideration, the City Council shall pay the public price established by the Government of Cantabria, regulated by Decree 86/2013, of December 26, which may be revised by order of the counselor. The agreement shall have an initial duration of four years, extendable by unanimous agreement for up to four additional years, and shall be registered in the Regional Electronic Registry of Agreements within fifteen days of its signing.

For its oversight, a Monitoring Commission is established, composed of three representatives from the Government of Cantabria and three from the City Council, responsible for resolving discrepancies, monitoring execution, and proposing modifications. Causes for termination include the expiration of the term without extension, unanimous agreement, or breach of commitments, following a one-month formal notice.

The agreement guarantees the continuity of an essential service for the residents of Bárcena de Cicero, which would otherwise remain unattended, and reinforces the cooperation model between the regional Administration and Cantabrian municipalities in waste management, in line with the circular economy objectives of state regulations.

Source: Official Gazette of Cantabria, no. 166, August 28, 2026, section 7.5 Miscellaneous, page 41230 (official reference: CVE-2026-6712).