clothing – Are there sustainable footwear alternatives to leather boots/shoes? – GWC Mag

I’m trying to make sure my next main set of shoes aren’t just cheap plastic tat, but I’m struggling to find good alternatives. My criteria are:

• Good enough shape to walk in all day without damaging my feet. To me, this rules out daps/plimsolls/converse-type trainers with flat bottoms
• Hard-wearing enough and snag-proof to be able to worn in most outdoor environments. E.g. streets, mud, undergrowth etc.
• At least slightly water-repellent
• Biodegradeable. Won’t wear into microplastic particles which will wash into the rivers/oceans/soils.
• Hard-wearing enough to last as long as possible, nothing disposable. Preferably repairable.

In the days before plastic I guess I would be wearing leather boots, which would have moulded to my feet, been repairable, have the soles replaced, and would have gently rotted at the end of their life. But nowadays the leather-making process is quite polluting, and I’m not sure how leather sits being vegetarian.

“Vegan leather” is just plastic, so doesn’t fit the biodegradeable criterion.

There are a couple of plastic-free shoe start-ups I’ve seen online, but a lot of them have very soft uppers (e.g. made of wool) which wouldn’t work well off-road nor really repel water. Or I’ve seen ones made of pineapple leaves but which usually have very flat soles.

Are there any shoes/boots which fit all my criteria? Is the only option some more ethical leather?