20 Ways to Reduce Your Dependence on Oil

It’s happened again: An oil spill, this time near Port Arthur, Texas. According to the U.S. Coastguard, 462,000 gallons of oil spilled into the water when a tanker collided with a towing barge on Saturday. According to an AP article on msnbc.com, crews scrambled to protect two “sensitive wildlife areas” — a lake that is prime breeding ground, and a wildlife management area.

If this latest oil spill has you thinking we need to look for alternatives to oil, get ready to make some changes to do your part to reduce America’s addiction to oil. Whether you go for a big change or keep it simple, every little thing you do sends a message.

20 Ways to Reduce Your Oil Consumption

Switch to a push mower that is powered by none other than you.
Plant gardens to reduce the amount of lawn that needs cutting.
Park the car; walk, bike, and take public transit whenever possible.
Avoid buying plastic toys and goods when an alternative is available.
Don’t use plastic bags; stick to cloth reusable bags that can be washed frequently.
Putting on a new roof this spring? Avoid tar in favor of a tile product (metal or clay).
Switch to soy-based printing inks (most are petroleum-based).
Avoid life vests, umbrellas, luggage, and other products made from nylon, a petroleum-based material. Instead, look for alternatives, such as luggage made from recycled plastic (better to reuse what we’ve already processed).
Ditch nylon and polyester clothing; buy natural fibers instead.
Wax the floors with beeswax instead of a petroleum-based commercial wax.
Beware of perfumes made with petrochemicals; look for all-natural scents made with essential oils.
Next time you have a headache, try a couple of big glasses of water before popping an Aspirin (yep, it too is made with oil products); most headaches are caused by dehydration.
Craft with natural fibers such as cotton, wool or alpaca rather than polyester yarn.
Purchase all-natural lip tints or lipstick; typical lipstick and lipgloss are made with oil products.
Remodeling the bathroom? Glass in your shower and you won’t need a plastic shower curtain.
Buy beeswax crayons; those Crayolas (and other brands) are made from oil.
Wear eyeglasses; soft contact lenses are made with petroleum products. (Plastic eyeglass lenses and frame are made with oil, but you’ll wear them a lot longer than most contacts, and you can donate them to charity when you upgrade.)
Stick with a wood deck. Plastic wood (like all plastics) is made from oil.
Embrace your natural hair color, or choose an all-natural hair color alternative such as henna.
Make boo-boos better with natural plant antiseptics, such as St. John’s Wort, lavender, tea tree oil, or eucalyptus; many commercial brands contain oil products.

Check out the 10 most surprising places to find petroleum.

By Cara Smusiak, Planet Green

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of
Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

Lainy F.

12:45AM PDT on Oct 9, 2011

Look serioisly at your fifteenth suggestion again. "Glass in your shower"! Do you seiously want the danger of broken glass in your shower? Or do you shower fully clothed wearing thick-soled boots?

The only alternative to a plastic shower curtain is a transparent hard plastic panel like I have, which I don't like, but no one has yet suggested to me a safe sensible alternative.

I love receiving any suggestions about things to use instead of what I currently do. But they must be safe.

send a green star

Vanessa S.

1:48AM PDT on Jul 14, 2011

Dear Friend,

Pollution from the Fisk and Crawford coal-fired power plants prematurely kills 42 people every year. That human cost is paid entirely by the communities who live in the shadows of these two aging plants. You won’t find it on Edison International’s bottom-line.

But the community in Chicago is fighting back. And we have an important role to play in supporting them.

Edison International is a national company and is part of a broader industry that affects all of us. They need to hear the message not just from community activists, but from the American public.

Join me and tell Edison International CEO Ted Craver to shut down the Fisk and Crawford plants by clicking the link below...

http://us.greenpeace.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=851&s_src=taf

Abbe A.

3:10PM PDT on Jun 29, 2011

I'm all for more garden, less lawn.

Ioney W.

6:41AM PDT on Jun 29, 2011

Thanks

4:33PM PDT on May 6, 2011

Here is a link for reasonably priced environmentally friendly crayons.

http://www.buy.com/retail/product.asp?sku=218054625&listingid=119221274&&

Courtney B.

10:45AM PST on Feb 17, 2011

This is part of why I'm going to be buying a bike soon. There's so much I can do by bike, and there are a ton of bike trails and lanes. If only more people would realize this!

Janine K.

6:03AM PST on Jan 23, 2011

Easier way to shop is with a basket. Goes right into car. Shop local, shop vegan, use solar power.

6:02AM PST on Jan 23, 2011

Don't forget to nver use plastic bags at the supermarket.

Silmar R.

12:34AM PST on Jan 8, 2011

Thanks for all these suggestions, things to remind us that we should minimize our dependance to oil and all products that we often use daily that need oil to produce them.

Mit W.

7:49PM PST on Jan 7, 2011

You got some good ideas, mainly use the bike, legs and public transport. But some i have to questions

Roofing tiles. Doesn't the firing of the clay require an enormous amount of heat?

The lawn mower. The human powered mower may be good for very small lawns but for my .2 acres, i only use 2 gallons gas per year.

Beeswax. Where is all this beeswax going to come from if everyone switched to it for all petroleum based waxes?

Natural Fibers vs Synthetics. Natural fibers tend to be harder and picker to wash and dry than synthetics (as in more energy and soap or detergent). Yes, i do use the electric clothes dryer, especially in colder and inclement weather. The drying time of synthetics require far lower temperature and time than natural fibers.

Anticeptics: One or two bottles (2 or 3 oz each) of mecurochrome lasted through the childhoods of me and my 2 sisters. I'd stick with what kills the most pathogens rather than use the least oil as even the worst oil user uses hardly any over the life of the product.