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To the North, Piles of Trash

Clothes form a new dune in the desert outside of Iquique.
Clothes form a new dune in the desert outside of Iquique. Photo: Antonio Cossio (AP)

More than 600 miles (1,000 kilometers) to the south, the desert showcases a different side of the climate crisis: the detritus of our fast fashion addiction. Outside the port town of Iquique, the Atacama has become a dumping ground for used clothing, with piles of discarded garments forming dunes in the desert.