Surprising Products Made from Oil

The Gulf of Mexico oil spill has brought new attention to the risks taken to gain greater access to oil. From pristine beaches covered with smelly tar to birds covered with sludge, finding a way to dramatically reduce oil use can be a real challenge. At first glance, I thought it would be relatively easy to go petroleum free or at least significantly cut my use, but the reality is petroleum is used in more products than I ever imagined.

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, over 22 barrels of oil are used per person in the United States each year. The U.S. uses 22% of the oil consumed in the world and remains as the top per capita consumer in the world.

Leave the Car At Home to Reduce Oil Use

One of the best approaches to reduce oil use is to leave the car at home. Try telecommuting a couple days a week. Avoid making unnecessary trips to the store and instead play to make stops at the store when travel is necessary. When traveling is a must, use public transportation. Another way to reduce oil use is to take advantage of technology to avoid unnecessary trips. Instead of flying to meet with a customer, try holding a web conference instead. When driving is essential, make sure tires are properly inflated and drive the speed limit to maximize your fuel efficiency.

Everyday Products Made From Oil

The majority of petroleum imported is used for transportation and energy purposes. However, approximately 7 gallons of each barrel of crude oil is used to make other products. Petroleum based products can be found in virtually every room of a typical American home. In the bathroom, caulking, putty, aspirin, antiseptics, shampoo, soap dishes, body lotion, and lipstick are just a few of the products made from oil.

Petroleum is also used to make crayons, dishwashing liquid, deodorant, eyeglasses, CDs, tires, shopping bags, plastics, flip flops, vitamins, watch bands, dice, ball point pens, computers, hair coloring and candles.

To reduce oil use, take the time to read product ingredient labels to find petroleum free products. Avoid products that contain ingredients made from petroleum. Common petroleum based ingredients include petroleum, petrolatum, paraffin, synthetic wax, isoparaffin, propylene glycol, isopropyl alcohol and mineral oil.

Even though products made from oil are not the top contributors to our oil consumption, eliminating these items from your shopping cart or finding plant-based alternatives can help reduce oil use. Other actions you can take to reduce oil use include avoiding using plastic shopping bags at stores. Bring along a canvas shopping bag of your own instead. When shopping for candles seek out varieties made with petroleum free ingredients. Small steps can help reduce your oil use

Sources:

Environmental Working Group Skin Deep Database - http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/wordsearch.php?query=petroleum&&start=50

U.S. Energy Information Administration - http://www.eia.doe.gov/kids/energy.cfm?page=oilhome-basics

Fuel Economy - http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/oildep.shtml

Petroleum Based Products - http://www.beloit.edu/sepm/Geology_and_the_enviro/Petroleum_need.html