Flip Flops Trash Recycled Into Art

If you had bought one pair of flip flops in your life, and everyone else on earth had bought one pair, that would be 7 billion flip flops. Most of the people in the world wear flip flops, and most of them only wear flip flops. So, of course, they wear out. And since they are cheap, less than a dollar, it's easier to buy a new pair than repair the old. So one person might use, oh, 30? 40? 50? more? pair in a lifetime? That's billions and billions of flip flops. You begin to get the picture. And true enough, there are whole garbage dumps -- particularly in developing countries such as those in Africa -- that are full of piles and piles of discarded flip flops.

Generally, industrial recycling of plastics, which you might assume takes care of the problem, is reserved for the really big jobs of recycling. And when you realize that plastics, which make up 11% of all recycled materials, are predominantly used for REALLY BIG industries, like:

1. building and construction materials
2. transportation parts and supplies
3. and furniture and bedding

When you realize this, then who really cares about those mountains and mountains of discarded thongs washing up along the shores of Kenya and other nations?

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The Special Problem With Plastics...think Flip Flops

“Plastic waste from bags, bottles, and flip-flops is a very persistent and large part of marine litter on beaches and in the seas,” said Peter Scheren, project manager of the Indian Ocean Lab project.

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Flip Flops are made of plastic, PVC or Polyurethane, which are among the most indestructible. Chemicals used in manufacturing plastic shoes such as flip flops pose hazards both to factory workers and to the consumers who buy and wear them. Once discarded these chemicals leach out and harm the environment.¹

^{1 "Chemicals - Up Close, Plastic Shoes From All Over the World", a report conducted by the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation. An analysis of shoes from 6 diverse countries revealed that all contained phthlate DEHP, harmful to humans.}

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The litter is not limited to just one ocean on the planet. Consider what is known as the Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch, a huge zone larger than twice the size of Texas, located between North America and Japan that is increasingly littered—6 times more plastic than plankton according to one report!

This eternal litter does not biodegrade, it just breaks down into smaller and smaller pieces, even to a powder. It has been found in the stomachs of small fish and birds and is working its way up the food chain...to us!

Check out this following video about the Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch, swirling bits of plastic, working its way up the food chain.

Julie Church is a marine biologist and a Kenyan who has tackled the flip flops problem head on. She said in an interview with the New York Times, “Flip flops are a global problem, just one indicator of the myriad rubbish in the sea, which we are treating as the world’s dumping ground.”

"Tons and tons and tons of plastic waste, including flip flops, flow down rivers and clog drainage systems, and animals are swallowing them," she said.

She came up with a creative solution, that is at least a beginning. She started a company using local Kenyans to make toys and gifts by reclaiming flip flops and selling the colorful products to eco-friendly fashion boutiques in the United States.

Ms. Church said piles of the flip flops wash up on shore and prevent the protected hawks bill and green turtles from leaving the sea to nest. Research has shown that the PVC, the most evil of plastics, and polyurethane are toxic to humans.

She receives boxes of flip flops that have washed up on the beaches of San Diego and Hawaii. Her company, UniquEco, turns them into butterfly key rings, and large sculptures of monkeys for chic eco-boutiques in New York City. The company makes the toys by peeling off and discarding the old outer layer and using the highly-colored, compacted innards.

This year, Ms. Church estimates that she will recycle 15 tons of rubber and plastic sandals. A mere drop in the swelling ocean of east Africa’s plastic refuse, but nonetheless a start.