Jonathan Lenato News Today

A blight on the beach, discarded flip flops are recycled and turned into colourful toys.

Tanlged in seaweed, buried in sand, washed up in rock pools – tattered old flip-flops are an eyesore on Kenya’s beaches, flushed out of rivers or carried across the sea from Asia and beyond. They are the footwear of choice for much of the world but cheap flip-flops, like other plastic trash, are polluting oceans and pristine white-sand beaches like Kilifi on the Indian Ocean.

NAIROBI, Feb 28 — Tangled in seaweed, buried in sand, washed up in rock pools — tattered old flip flops are an eyesore on Kenya’s beaches, flushed out of rivers or carried across the sea from Asia and beyond. They are the footwear of choice for much of the world but cheap flip flops, like...

Less than 10% of plastic is recycled, with most dumped in oceans and landfill. A Kenyan enterprise recycles discarded flip flops and other plastic garbage found on beaches into colourful masterpieces.

Plastic waste and old flip flops are collected and recycled by Ocean Sole in Kenya, who turn environmental trash into treasure.

Tangled in seaweed, buried in sand, washed up in rock pools - tattered old flip flops are an eyesore on Kenya's beaches, flushed out of rivers or carried across the sea from Asia and beyond.