This paper discusses municipal waste generation and the municipal management system in a Mexican city and identifies the main pollution vectors. There is a scarcity of relevant information on waste generation at the municipal level, as well as the types and characteristics of the waste generators. Only recently has the management of municipal waste, in Mexico, improved via better data collection and the introduction of new teams of professionals in charge of sanitation departments. However, the growth of waste arisings in Mexican urban settings during the past decade has overwhelmed the staff in charge of municipal waste management in large cities (i.e. those urban areas with more than 500 000 people). Part of the growth in waste generation corresponds to the population growth within the city partly via rural to urban migration. Increased consumption as well as the presence of more packaging material in processed goods has also been a contributing factor. Waste collection has tried to keep pace with the growth of municipal waste generation but has rarely succeeded. The most problematic issue of all in waste management in large cities, like the metro area of Guadalajara, is the disposal of the wastes. This paper reviews the scale of the waste problem, the corresponding municipal collection and transport as well as the final disposal of wastes in local ‘dumps’ and the resulting environmental pollution vectors that pose a number of risks to local populations.