Synthetic or Conventional Motor Oil: Which is Better for the Environment?
Dear EarthTalk: Is it better for the environment to burn synthetic oil or conventional oil in my car s engine? David Bedell, New Canaan, CT According to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, 85 percent of the motor oil changed at home by do-it-yourselfers–about 9.5 million gallons a year in that state alone–ends up disposed of improperly in sewers, soil and trash. Multiply that by 50 states and it is easy to see how used motor oil might well be the one of the largest sources of pollution affecting groundwater and U.S. waterways. The implications are startling indeed, as one quart of oil can create a two-acre sized oil slick, and a gallon of oil can contaminate a million gallons of fresh water. The Lesser of Two Evils Conventional motor oils are derived from petroleum, whereas synthetic oils are replicas manufactured from chemicals that are really no kinder to the environment than petroleum. As such, conventional and synthetic motor oils are about equally guilty whe
