Sneakerhead culture is very much alive and well, and our insatiable desire for kicks knows no bounds.

But what many folks might not recognize is that there’s also an incredible amount of waste in the shoe industry and that more than 300 million pairs of shoes get thrown away in the US each year. Once they hit the landfill, they take anywhere in the neighborhood of 30-40 years to decompose. However, the midsoles of your favorite sneakers get made with ethylene vinyl acetate, and that can take upwards of 1,000 years to fully biodegrade.