I think someone is trying to tell us something… With the colossal disaster of the BP Deepwater Horizon rig that spewed more than 184 million gallons into the Gulf of Mexico, and another spill reported today (seriously) in the Gulf north of the BP spill, and yet another oil spill (again, seriously) in the Midwest that has gushed out more than 800,000 gallons of oil into the Kalamazoo River in Southern Michigan, I have got to believe that we’re getting a signal we need to reduce that consumption… Now!
Change begins with you, so what can you do, as an individual, to take action? We’ve got to get our priorities straight. And here’s a start. Can you commit to one weekend without oil?
On August 21st and 22nd, commit to these 11 actions!
- Walk or ride your bike: Avoid using cars and if you must, always try to carpool. Transportation accounts for 40 percent of our petroleum consumption and is easily one of the biggest areas we need to improve upon.
- Enjoy the outdoors: Avoid buying new sporting equipment, since oil makes up nearly 25% of rubber. Footballs or basketballs, for example, can last for many years and used equipment is often just as good and will reduce demand for oil needed to make new rubber.
- Use reusable bags: Avoid disposable plastic. Plastic bags are a huge waste for very little benefit. Nearly 10 percent of U.S. oil consumption, approximately 2 million barrels a day, is used to make plastic products alone.
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