6 Gasoline Numbers that Show We Could Try Harder

This post is by Sheryl Canter, an Online Writer and Editorial Manager at Environmental Defense Fund.

Oil is over $100 a barrel now – an all-time high. Even if burning gasoline weren’t a major cause of global warming, a price that high is motivation to conserve.

But we don’t seem to be trying very hard.

Here are some numbers that make the point from Earth: The Sequel, the new book by EDF President Fred Krupp and Miriam Horn. (All profits from book sales support our global warming work.)

Fuel Efficiency

Last December, Congress passed an Energy Bill that raised CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Economy) standards for the first time in 32 years. It took significant negotiation to push this through, and yet we are still far beyond Europe and Asia.

• 44.2 miles per gallon – Average fuel economy of the European vehicle fleet, page 226.
• 45 miles per gallon – Average fuel economy of the Japanese vehicle fleet, page 226.
• 35 miles per gallon – Average fuel economy of the American vehicle fleet when the newly passed CAFE standards are fully implemented in 2020 (up from under 30 mpg currently), page 226.

Gasoline Burned

It’s hard to wrap your mind around how much oil we actually burn. A post from earlier this year might help: Picturing 21 Million Barrels of Oil (the amount we burned last August).

• $820 million – Amount the U.S. exports every day to pay for the oil needed to supply our vehicle fleet, page 73.
• 180 billion gallons – Amount of gasoline and diesel fuel Americans consume every year in their vehicles, page 76.
• 2 billion gallons – Amount of gasoline that could be saved in the U.S. with a 10% reduction in the rolling resistance of tires (with no compromise on safety), page 224.

Clearly we need to do more to reduce our use of gasoline. Better fuel standards are important, but there are many things we can do on our own. Check out some of our previous posts for tips:

• Turn Off Your Engine!
• Tips for Cleaner Driving
• To Drive Less, Live Closer to Work