Recycle bins dumped into trash truck in west El Paso neighborhood, city claims it was isolated incident

EL PASO, Texas -- For the past month, Juan Delgado from El Paso's Sunset Heights noticed his recycling bin and his trash bin were being dumped in the same trash truck.

Another resident in the same westside neighborhood caught his recycling bins being dumped into the trash truck on camera.

Delgado told ABC-7 he decided to approach the driver and said the driver told him he was told to do it because the recycling in the area was too contaminated.

"I was extremely frustrated, you have to spend time doing it, you have to go through a class in order to get the bin," said Delgado.

Nicholas Ybarra with the City of El Paso's Environmental Services Department said the driver admitted to putting both bins in the same truck, but indicated it was an isolated incident.

"We are always in continuous training with our employees," said Ybarra. "The ones that recently saw in the video (trash trucks have cameras) will be going through a training again."

Ybarra told ABC-7, it is protocol for the truck drivers to throw the recycling in the trash truck if there is too much contamination. If that happens, first your recycling bin will be tagged and then you will be contacted by code enforcement.

Click here for a look at what you can put in your recycling.