Durán Garbage Collection Resumes After Nearly Three Weeks

Durán was set to restart garbage collection on Tuesday, July 14, 2026, after nearly three weeks without regular service.

Mayor Luis Chonillo announced the restart and thanked the people and institutions that joined the contingency plan during the emergency. He also signaled openness to institutional dialogue to address technical differences.

What Caused The Suspension

Consorcio Durán Limpio suspended service on June 25 over a municipal debt that exceeds $9.7 million.

The company said the municipality had collected $2.4 million in advance through the garbage-collection fee, while the company had received only $1.7 million.

Durán declared an emergency on July 1, when waste began to be collected with dump trucks and heavy machinery. The city produces about 350 tons of garbage per day, and waste accumulated in several areas during the suspension.

What This Means For Expats

For people living, working, or handling errands around Durán and the wider Guayaquil area, the key question is whether service normalizes neighborhood by neighborhood. A formal restart does not always mean every sector is immediately clear.

If you have appointments or property visits in Durán this week, expect cleanup to be uneven at first and avoid assuming the sanitation problem vanished overnight.