What we all can do about the oil spill

We're sick at the thought of the continuing BP oil disaster threatening beaches, wetland areas and coral reefs many of us have visited and loved and killing wildlife including whales, sea turtles, dolphins and birds that are among our most beloved ocean species.

We're horrified at an underwater oil volcano that is still thought to be spewing more than 1 million gallons a day directly into the Gulf and that has spread oil so far it would cover an area at least from Milwaukee to Chicago and from Rockford to Lake Michigan's eastern shore, according to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration data crunched by a Google engineer at paulrademacher.com/oilspill.

We're critical of lax government oversight going back decades, of BP's utter failure to anticipate and manage the spill, of slow federal response to an emergency that's in its 57th day.

And we're frustrated, feeling stymied in our ability to do anything. Even boycotting BP service stations misses the point, since most are independently owned.

Yet, there is something we can do - something we have to do. It stems from recognition that the Gulf oil disaster could be a repeat occurrence, or foreshadow even bigger spills in even more environmentally sensitive places if our demand for oil continues to build.

It's something to think about every time we buy a case of plastic water bottles, use disposable plastic plates or bring home groceries in throwaway plastic bags. That plastic, derived from oil, drives the kind of demand that leads companies like BP to drill deep-water oil wells just off our shores. Cutting many disposable plastics out of our lives is easy, and necessary.

Resolve to be consistent on other easy energy savers - unplug rechargers that aren't in use, set your computer to hibernate, use power strips on TVs, stereos and home theater equipment so you can really turn them off and eliminate the power used in standby mode.

Unplug that secondary refrigerator or freezer that contains just a few items or call ComEd, which will haul it away, recycle the parts, and pay you $25 (comed.com/sites/homesavings/pages/appliancerecycling.aspx). Consider energy-saving home improvements that qualify for income tax credits (energy.gov/taxbreaks.htm).

Reduce driving trips and cut fuel use by accelerating smoothly, keeping tires correctly inflated, taking heavy items out of the trunk and removing roof racks you aren't using.

Actions like these won't make us less angry about the BP spill. There's more we can do, from contributing money to save wildlife endangered by the spill to letting our representatives in Congress know how we feel about offshore drilling and the continuing BP oil leak.

But loosening our personal dependence on the oil industry has be part of our response. It's what each of us must do.