Well, it’s (almost) official: America might actually be using less oil.  The Energy Information Administration recently released their estimates for summer demand, and it came out to be slightly less than last summer.  In fact, if they are correct it will be the first time in 17 years that summer demand is less than the previous year.

They are only expecting a slight decline, about 36,000 barrels a day, down to about 9.404 million barrels a day.  This may seem insignificant, but I think it’s a promising sign.  The struggling economy and the high cost of fuel are causing people to cut back. 

The EIA also estimates that the average cost for a gallon of gas will be somewhere near $3.54 across the country, with some places above the $4 mark.  Diesel is predicted to run about $3.73, 88 cents above the average of just one year ago. 

While these are still nothing more than estimated guesses, if they are correct I think it would be a major milestone for America to finally let up even in the slightest on our unquenchable thirst for fossil fuel.  Let’s just hope that this is a sign of permanent changes, because we definitely need to be making long-term changes now.  I think more and more people are realizing the need to live differently, and we are ever so slowly moving in the right direction .  What do you think?

From the Environmental News Network