This is the main change resulting from the entry into force of the new waste collection service in the municipality. Another significant change relates to the time for depositing waste, which from the 16th must be done, on all routes, between 7 p.m. and 9 p.m.

The routes, frequency and door-to-door collection locations will remain the same - six times a week in the urban centre and three times a week in the other parishes in the municipality. 

‘We all stand to gain from the removal of lorries from the roads during the day, but we will also ensure a faster and more efficient service, reducing the time waste spends on the streets and ensuring a clean municipality at dawn,’ emphasises the Mayor, Mário Passos.

The new waste collection contract also brings changes for residents in the urban area of Vila Nova de Famalicão. Next to multi-family and commercial buildings that do not have waste collection points, the local authority will place small containers, with a capacity of between 60 and 80 litres, for waste disposal.

They will be placed on the streets by municipal services before waste collection time and collected after the truck has passed. 

The main aim of this measure is to ‘avoid public health issues related to the placement of waste bags on public roads,’ explains Mário Passos. 

It should be noted that in order to tackle this problem, which also affects other residential and commercial areas in the municipality, the City Council has already begun to install collective waste disposal equipment.

The first of the 45 units that will be installed throughout this year is already available to the public and is located on Rua Luís Barroso. These units consist of modules with ventilated grilles, with containers inside and a conditioned mechanical locking system, equipped with water and sanitation to ensure all health and safety conditions are met. They will be managed in collaboration with condominiums or residents' representatives.

The Municipality of Famalicão will also extend the pilot project for door-to-door collection of organic household waste to the entire urban perimeter and certain areas in the towns of Joane, Ribeirão and Riba de Ave, two days a week, covering specific areas of multi-family and single-family dwellings.

It should be noted that, at this level, the City Council also collects non-domestic bio-waste in three circuits: from large producers (companies with canteens), from the HORECA system (hotels, cafés and restaurants) and also through the selective collection of green waste in all cemeteries in the municipality, thus enabling its recovery and avoiding its disposal in landfills. 

The figures for bio-waste collection have been increasing year on year. In 2025 alone, 2,420 tonnes were collected. With regard to the selective collection of the three main types of recyclable waste (glass, paper/cardboard and packaging), there is a network of more than 600 recycling points throughout the municipality, with plans to install 300 new recycling points in the parishes of the territory over the coming months.