Spain ranks seventh in Europe with the highest waste recovery rates, and exhibits one of the most rapidly growing environment and waste management industries. According to the Spanish National Statistics Institute (INE), 64% of Spain’s total solid waste was treated in recovery operations in 2020. This includes 55% in recycling, 5% in landfill operations, and 4% in energy recovery, leaving 36% of waste to be landfilled. However, municipal solid waste (MSW) presents a more challenging scenario, with only 39% recycled and a notable 48% ending up in landfills without prior selective separation. The primary waste management system at the municipal level in Spain involves street containerization, where households separate waste into different fractions and deposit them in designated street containers. Despite this system’s widespread use, it falls short of the EU’s ambitious target of reducing municipal waste landfilling to just 10% by 2035 and achieving a recycling rate of 65%. Urban wastewater treatment is another area where Spain needs improvement. Only 85% of populations with more than 2,000 equivalent inhabitants have access to proper wastewater treatment, leading to significant non-compliance with European directives. This gap highlights the need for innovative solutions to meet environmental standards. In response to these challenges, projects like SYMSITES are emerging, aiming to develop technologies that combine wastewater treatment with solid waste management from both urban and industrial sources. These integrated solutions are designed to enhance municipal management systems and ensure compliance with European environmental objectives. Recent years have seen the introduction of alternative municipal waste collection systems in Spain, including pneumatic systems, commercial collection points, clean points, and door-to-door collection. These methods offer a twist on traditional containerized collection, and pave the way for the next chapter for the environment and waste management industry in Spain.