Castellnou de Bages approves the waste ordinance with closed containers and sanctions

The Castellnou de Bages City Council has made definitive the approval agreement of the municipal Ordinance regulating waste, once the public exhibition period closed without allegations. The text, initially approved by the plenary on July 7, 2026, under file 164/2026, is published in full in the Official Gazette of the Province of Barcelona on September 28, 2026, with the reference CVE 202610144391. The ordinance will enter into force fifteen days after this publication.

The regulation governs the prevention, collection, and transport of municipal waste within the municipal district and is binding for all natural or legal persons whose activity generates municipal waste. The council bases this on Law 7/2022, of April 8, on waste and contaminated soils, and Legislative Decree 1/2009, of July 21, which approves the revised text of the Law regulating waste, and processes the publication in accordance with article 178 of Legislative Decree 2/2003 and article 65 of Decree 179/1995. The announcement was signed by the mayor, David Canyadó i Domènech, on September 23, 2026.

The text replaces the selective collection model with open containers with a high-efficiency system featuring closed containers and access control. The management of the collection corresponds to the Bages Waste Management Consortium, which already provides the service by municipal delegation, and incorporates the provisions of the Regulation of the public collection service with access control and user identification (RECAIU) approved by the consortium on December 14, 2020.

Closed containers and user identification

The new system provides for the delivery of fractions through containers in contribution areas, with closure and identification for the fractions that weigh the most in the waste:

• Residual fraction and organic fraction (FORM): closed containers with access control and user identification via card or mobile device (XIP).
• Glass, paper and cardboard, and light packaging: open containers with free access for citizens and businesses.
• Bulky items and plant waste: collection on demand.

The municipality does not have a fixed waste collection center; residents may use the facilities of the Bages Waste Management Consortium in Súria and Santpedor. The City Council maintains a mobile waste collection center, a mini-waste center, and a Green Point located in the Montserrat Building.

Inspection with access to establishments and opening of bags

The ordinance deploys an inspection service carried out by municipal personnel with attributed functions, local guards, and civic agents, who will be considered agents of authority. The facts they establish shall enjoy a presumption of certainty for evidentiary purposes.

The inspection personnel are authorized to:

• Enter any establishment or activity at any time to verify compliance with municipal waste regulations.
• Take samples and photographs and examine documentation relating to the activity with environmental impact.
• Identify and open bags or items containing waste abandoned on public roads or outside the designated disposal points.
• Issue a complaint report or record including date, time, location, observed circumstances, and graphic evidence.

Inspected persons and entities are obliged to provide information, allow the taking of samples, and facilitate access to the necessary spaces without prior notice.

Fines of up to 3,000 euros and loss of contracts

Infractions are classified as minor, serious, and very serious and are specified in Annex I of the ordinance, which lists 16 minor behaviors, 22 serious, and 6 very serious. The fines are:

• Minor: up to 750 euros.
• Serious: from 751 to 1,000 euros.
• Very serious: from 1,001 to 3,000 euros.

Minor infractions expire in one year, serious in three, and very serious in five; recidivism occurs when a second infraction of the same nature is committed within 12 months of the final resolution. For minor and serious sanctions without recidivism, the user may request to offset the amount with hours for the benefit of the municipality. Companies sanctioned for a serious or very serious infraction may not be contracted by the City Council for a minimum of two years.

The regulation directly affects residents and companies of the municipality: it establishes the obligation to separate waste at the source, prohibits abandoning waste on public roads or in the natural environment, and penalizes the fraudulent use of container identification systems, linking the service to the tax established by the fiscal ordinance. With its entry into force fifteen days after publication, the council already has the inspection and sanctioning framework to enforce the new collection model.

Source: Official Gazette of the Province of Barcelona (BOPB), September 28, 2026, Local Administration, pp. 1-37 (official reference: CVE 202610144391).