Boot Recycling Program

AUSSIE TRADIES ARE GIVING LANDFILL THE BOOT

Thanks to the Totally Workwear Boot Recycling Program, Australian Tradies have been ditching their worn-out and toxic workboots for the good of their feet and the Australian environment. Worn-out work boots aren’t just painful for the tradie wearing them; once thrown out they also become a pain on the environment. In conjunction with recycling company 'Save Our Soles', and freight partner Toll, the Totally Workwear recycling initiative gives tradies the opportunity to recycle their worn out footwear and reduce the amount of trade workboots contributing to landfill.

Totally Workwear’s Boot Recycling Program was the first of its kind in Australia, and since its launch in 2012 has been busy recycling smelly old boots, proudly saving more than 10 tonnes of boots from landfill ! With trade men and women changing their boots as regularly as every 6 months for safety purposes, the recycling initiative has given all types of tradies an easy option to also reduce their carbon footprint.

TWW Group Manager, Troy Yewdall said:

“Trades men and women often work in harsh and demanding environments, so it’s no surprise that they need to change their footwear regularly to stay safe and comfortable. The Totally Workwear recycling initiative was created to give tradies an easy option of recycling their boots, rather than simply throwing them away. By recycling them at their local Totally Workwear store, tradies are able to do best by the environment and their feet”.

Through the recycling of footwear, Save Our Soles has helped create a vast range of reusable products, including children’s playground matting.

Director, Save Our Soles John Elliott said:

“Over 100 million pairs of shoes are brought into Australia each year; most of which we can predict end up as landfill. The Totally Workwear Recycling Program is a great step for tradies to dispose of their old work boots while helping reduce landfill and creating children’s playground matting for schools and child care centres, store and gym matting, as well as tyres. Rather than just discard the footwear to landfill, recycling them gives tradies the opportunity to reduce their own personal carbon footprint and give their favourite boots a longer life”.

Boot recycling bins can be found in all participating Totally Workwear stores nationwide. Do your part for the environment, head to your local Totally Workwear store and recycle your old workboots today!

THE BOOT RECYCLING PROCESS

STEP 1. Customers leave old boots behind when they purchase a new pair of boots in our special recycling bins - available at participating stores.
STEP 2. Bin loads of boots are collected from our participating TWW stores.
STEP 3. The trucks arrive at the processing plant in Melbourne with the old boots.
STEP 4. The boots are sorted into categories and are disassembled by separating the steel and rubber components.
STEP 5. The rubber component is then broken down or ‘crumbed' into tiny granules and steel elements are melted down into scrap metal.
STEP 6. The separated components are then ready to be used in new products like rubber floor mats, children’s playgrounds and so much more.