The Campo de Gibraltar Association of Municipalities reduces the fee for disposing of invasive algae

The Mancomunidad de Municipios del Campo de Gibraltar has finalized the reduction of the public price for the direct landfill disposal of the invasive algae Rugulopterix Okamurae and other non-compostable species from beaches, which changes from 45.00 to 28.13 euros per ton (VAT not included) for the 2026 fiscal year. The agreement is published in the Official Gazette of the Province of Cádiz no. 207, of October 27, 2026 (reference No. 352.430) and retroacts its economic effects to May 5, with the regularization and refund of settlements already processed.

The change affects section 4.1.8 of the Consolidated Text of the Public Price for the voluntary provision of the joint service of deposit, treatment, and elimination or recovery of waste, approved by the Junta de Comarca in the session of July 28, 2026. The file was submitted for public consultation via an announcement in the Official Gazette of the Province of Cádiz no. 155, of August 13, 2026, with a period of 30 business days extending from August 13 to September 25, 2026. As no claims or suggestions were submitted, the agreement was finalized with effects from September 26, 2026, in accordance with article 49 of Law 7/1985, of April 2. The announcement is signed by the president, Susana R. Pérez Custodio, in Algeciras on October 9, 2026.

The origin: the declaration of force majeure due to beach cast-ups

The downward revision is based on the Agreement of April 29, 2026, of the Governing Council of the Junta de Andalucía, published in BOJA no. 84, of May 5, 2026, which declared force majeure and extreme necessity generated by the massive arrival of beach cast-ups on the Andalusian coasts. This declaration activated, from the day of its publication, the exemption provided for in article 89.1.a) of Law 7/2022, of April 8, on waste and contaminated soils for a circular economy.

On this basis, ARCGISA prepared a technical-economic study dated June 18, 2026, which certifies that, after deducting the tax component, the rate could be reduced while maintaining the coverage of the service cost.

How the new rate is calculated

The new amount is obtained from the 2023 base rate prior to the entry into force of the state tax on waste disposal, and its update with the already approved and published coefficients:

• Calculation base: 25.02 euros per ton (VAT not included), 2023 amount prior to the tax.
• 2023 Coefficient: 1.0646, for operating costs of the South Europe Environmental Complex.
• Ka 2024: 1.0242; Ka 2025: 1.0091; Ka 2026: 1.0218.
• Resulting series: €26.64/t (2023), €27.28/t (2024), €27.53/t (2025) and €28.13/t (2026).

The text specifies that the remaining headings and public price rates remain unchanged: 101.81 euros per ton for private companies, cross-border waste, and individuals; 115.12 euros for the landfill disposal of waste other than pruning and street cleaning waste; and 710.45 euros per ton in the animal crematorium.

Regularization and refund of settlements

The sole transitional provision establishes the economic scope of the reduction and who executes it:

• The rate of 28.13 euros per ton applies to deposits made from May 5, 2026.
• Settlements or invoices issued from that date at 45.00 euros per ton will be rectified, with a refund or compensation of the difference, in the first invoice issued after the entry into force.
• Deposits made up to and including May 4, 2026, are governed by the rate in force at that time and will not be regularized.
• ARCGISA is charged with the operational application of the new rate and the regularization, with notification to the associated city councils and the concessionary entity of the Southern Europe Environmental Complex.

Entry into force and future review

The modification will enter into force the day following the full publication of its text in the Official Provincial Gazette, once the period stipulated in article 65.2 of Law 7/1985 has elapsed, and its economic effects are retroactive to May 5, 2026, under article 39.3 of Law 39/2015, of October 1, as they constitute favorable effects for those obligated to pay.

The rate is integrated into the annual review regime via the Ka coefficient approved for the 2024-2027 period in the Official Gazette of the Province of Cádiz no. 205, of October 27, 2023. If the declaration of force majeure were to cease to have effect, ARCGISA must submit a proposal within a maximum period of one month to reincorporate the impact of the tax, and the rate now approved may not be applied to deposits accrued from that moment onward. No administrative appeal may be filed against the agreement, which is an administrative provision of a general nature, although a contentious-administrative appeal may be filed before the High Court of Justice of Andalusia within two months.

The reduction eases the bill for city councils and companies that remove seaweed from the beaches of Campo de Gibraltar in a context of recurring beachcast seaweed: each ton deposited now costs 16.87 euros less, and settlements issued since May must be refunded or compensated in the next invoice.

Source: Official Gazette of the Province of Cádiz, no. 207, of October 27, 2026, section I, pp. 10-12 (official reference: No. 352.430).