Data on the Spanish state can be found in the newspaper report Eldiario.es. Catalonia and Asturias have provided concrete data. In Catalonia, up to now, 275 tons of infectious waste were collected per month and in the midst of the health crisis, 1,200 have been reached. Asturias plans to collect in April a total of 135,483 kilos of waste, while in 2019 the monthly average is 33,310 kilos. In Madrid the figure will rise by 300% and in Castilla y León by 270%. The newspaper has pointed out that data have been requested in other Autonomous Communities but have not been provided to them, and has cited the CAV as one of them.

Since contaminated waste treatment plants are in full operation, the Government of Spain has authorised the collection of waste containers on land or pavilions, provided that landfills and incinerators are not able to manage these wastes. In case of need, the burning of material will be authorized to the cement plants.

Environmentalists in Action believe that some of the decisions taken by administrations can put an end to the circular economy. The environmental group assures that a number of household waste that was previously taken to be recycled will be deposited in landfill or incinerator, claiming that COVID-19 is contaminated, to ensure the safety of workers in recycling plants.

The environmental group has proposed that these residues should be kept in the tanks for 72 hours, as it is estimated that the virus persists in the plastic during that time and could subsequently be treated as a non-infectious residue.