WESLACO – A homeowner said he’s tried of cleaning up onion skins from his yard. The Weslaco man said the debris is coming from a nearby processing plant.

Joe Vidales said no matter how many times he cleans his yard there are always more onion skins. He said the property he now lives on has been in his family for years.

His grandfather bought the land in the 1920s and he loves his home. The problem, he said, is the mess caused by one of his neighbors – Tex-Mex Sales LLC, an onion processing plant.

“It is every day. The wind doesn’t quit blowing when the sun goes down. So even after they close up for the day, the wind continues to blow anything that isn’t attached to an onion. And so it can be a truck or a crate and eventually it will get blown on to my yard or my neighbor’s yard,” he said.

Vidales said the problem with the onion debris is it’s hard to collect all of the skins because they simply can’t be raked. He said the plant creates a lot of noise 24 hours a day which can make enjoying a sunny day difficult.

“Well if the noise is ongoing I try not to spend any time outside because it is just not tolerable. It’s not enjoyable to sit outside with the noise the way it is,” Vidales said.

The Weslaco man said he and his neighbors aren’t the only ones affected but also their pets.

“Well you know the water dishes for the cat and the dog are subject to catching flying debris and in a very short amount of time, the onion will turn the water yellow and the pets can’t drink or won’t drink out of there. So that is an issue as well,” he said.

CHANNEL 5 NEWS spoke to Mardoqueo Hinojosa, Weslaco’s planning director. He is aware of Vidales’ complaints. He said the company is allowed to do business at that location due to zoning.

“As you can see form the map, the properties are already zoned, industrial zoned. They have been industrial for many years,” he said.

Hinojosa said the city has worked with the owners of Tex-Mex Sales LLC to create solutions to some of the problems. He said the company has proven to be open to finding solutions in the past.

Vidales said he’s not going to stop until something is done to eliminate the debris.

We went by Tex-Mex Sales LLC but they declined an on-camera interview. They did tell us they have tried working with Vidales in the past.

The company owner said they’ve offered to send a few workers to Vidales’ home to help clean up the yard. They said Vidales has declined their help.