Dedham Junior Women's Club Old Shoe Recycle Project

How long do you think it takes a pair of athletic shoes to decompose in a landfill? 5 years? Maybe 10? It takes up to 30 to 40 years for a shoe to decompose. According to the U.S. Department of the Interior, Americans throw away at least 300 million pairs of shoes each year. Unless those shoes are recycled, they are sitting in landfills all over the country.

With those facts in mind, the Dedham Junior Women’s Club is launching its shoe collection program for the town. Collection boxes are at both the Main and Endicott Library. The shoes gathered will go to the Nike Reuse-A-Shoe program.

Nike began the Reuse-A-Shoe program in the early 1990’s with the goal of reducing the company’s environmental impact. Nike collects approximately 1.5 million pairs of shoes each year with collection bins at their stores in addition to thousands of tons of manufacturing scrap material. This material is turned into Nike Grind, a material that creates courts, tracks, playing fields and playgrounds.

If you don’t have a trip to a Nike store on your agenda, the DJWC has made it easier for you to help the planet and give your worn-out shoes a chance at a new life. Shoes will be collected up to March 31, 2019. Who knows, your shoes could be part of a field that one day will host an NFL champion!