THE SUMMER RUBBISH TRAIL IS BACK

July 26, 2026

THE SUMMER RUBBISH TRAIL IS BACK

As is customary every summer, Benitatxell Town Council brightens up our lives with the “SUMMER RUBBISH TRAIL”, which we highly recommend to both residents and visitors.

Last year, our concerns reached a peak when the councillor responsible for waste management confirmed that the 2025 event would be the last one. On 27th May, he even stated his intention that, by the summer of 2026, all rubbish collection points in Cumbre del Sol would be fitted with cameras.

The initial plan to fence off the rubbish collection points also caused great concern amongst residents. We feared the worst: that the Council would introduce software to monitor sick leave and staff holidays and use it during the festivities when some of the staff assigned to Cumbre have to carry out collection duties in the village, or to increase the frequency of collections or to contract an additional collection service during the summer months, as is done in other neighbouring municipalities, such as Benissa.

Fortunately, it turned out to be nothing more than a scare. None of that has happened, and here in Benitatxell we continue to enjoy the now legendary ‘SUMMER RUBBISH TRAIL’, which already attracts more interest than the festivities themselves.

Let’s hope it receives the recognition it deserves from local residents and is designated a site of cultural interest, given that the rubbish tax rate for holiday homes certainly warrants such recognition, as it is the highest in the Marina Alta.

We must thank the Council for this place of honour, given the legal constraints that oblige to calculate the rubbish collection charge on the basis of the cost of waste generation, as stipulated by law, and the Council’s efforts to circumvent the law by failing to provide the economic and technical report on which the calculation of the charge is based, despite being obliged to do so.

On 16 March 2026, the Ombudsman issued a decision closing Complaint 2504796, reminding the Council of its legal obligation to do so; however, the Council also ignored this decision. All members of the public, including members of the Valencian Parliament, will be able to see the failure to act on the measures proposed by the Ombudsman in these proceedings, as published in 12472871.pdf

No law can stop our local council from continuing to run the ‘Summer Rubbish Trail’!

El Poble Nou de Benitatxell has been recognised by the Valencian Regional Government as a ‘Municipality of Tourist Distinction’ for the year 2025. The news went largely unnoticed and the criteria for retaining this distinction were not made public, but thanks to the invaluable efforts of the waste management department, we are once again able to enjoy the ‘Summer Rubbish Trail’.

We have marked the main points of interest along the route on the map: