biodegrades slowly and builds up quickly in landfills due to the high occurrence of discarded tires. These pose a significant threat as fire hazards, which are difficult to extinguish, and pollute our environment. They also breed disease when stagnant water becomes trapped inside the tires. Old leather jackets, lace sweaters and magazine pages are also great materials to work with, because it's possible to make several unique pieces out of them. Even if these garments aren't suitable to be donated to Goodwill, they could still be upcycled into interesting wearable art in many cases.
Our environment is presently in a state of crisis due to the alarming amounts of garbage we put into it. For example, the "world's largest dump" is an aquatic vortex of trash which circulates between California and Asia, forming the Eastern Garbage Patch and the Western Garbage Patch (also known collectively as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch). The Eastern Patch is approximately twice as large as the state of Texas. Both patches are filled with a variety of materials, especially plastic and fishing nets. Photos of these vast, aquatic landfills are mind-boggling at first sight. However, their most disturbing aspect is actually invisible. Plastic items which begin by floating on top of the ocean's surface eventually break down into smaller and smaller pieces, forming a deep, microscopic soup of plastic which aquatic life consumes and eventually chokes on. The plastic is also harmful to plankton, which many fish feed on. It filters out sunlight and prevents plankton from growing. Less fish also means less food for birds that feed on them, and also mistake garbage for food. Many creatures also become entangled in the nets or plastic parts, causing them to develop deformations, or drown. This ultimately affects our food supply, as well as the quality of seafood we consume from affected waters.
We can mitigate some of this damage simply by changing our recycling habits, and by choosing to wear recycled jewelry or garments instead of constantly buying and throwing away mass-produced items which end up in landfills or oceans.