The municipal group PSC-Girona pel Canvi has proposed that the use of the card to open the new smart containers in the city be optional. Currently, the Girona City Council has begun the installation of a new generation of containers that operate 24 hours a day and seven days a week, but require the mandatory use of the card for their opening.
Debate on the mandatory nature and bonuses
From the PSC it is proposed that there be no penalties in the waste fee, as is currently the case, but that those who use the card be rewarded. The proposal seeks that the system be voluntary and bonused for residents who choose to use the card.
"That the use of the card be optional and subsidized" - Maxi Fuentes, deputy spokesperson of the municipal group PSC-Girona pel Canvi
Maxi Fuentes has defended that the measure responds to a neighborhood demand and has insisted on the need for the municipal government to listen to the citizenry. The deputy spokesperson has remarked that the proposal does not entail a significant economic change nor a radical change, but rather it is about taking advantage of existing resources to improve sustainability criteria and initiate a shock plan.
"It is a demand from the citizenry that the government listens and it is not doing so entirely" - Maxi Fuentes, PSC-Girona pel Canvi
Criticisms of the management and transparency of the data
Bea Esporrín, spokesperson for the PSC, has recalled that the purpose of European legislation is to recycle more and better. Esporrín has pointed out that the fulfillment of the objectives is also possible with closed containers, but has questioned the official data from the government team on the recycling rate in the city.
"The government team's data on 58% recycling should be taken with caution and we ask for more transparency" - Bea Esporrín, spokesperson for the PSC
Josep Palouzié, councilor, has added that everyone has the will to increase the recycling rate, but considers that it is not necessary to complicate the lives of the residents to achieve it.
Political context and next steps
The municipal elections in Girona are scheduled for May 2027. The debate on waste management and the smart container model is shaping up as one of the topics that will mark the local political agenda in the coming months.
The PSC insists that it must be thought what Girona is wanted within a year and that the city needs to recover its pulse. The municipal group proposes to take advantage of the existing infrastructure to improve sustainability and demands that the municipal government be more transparent with data and more receptive to citizen demands.