About $561. That’s how much a typical Hawaii family unwittingly contributed to Russia last year. This was in the form of everyday energy purchases — electricity, gasoline — that were generated from Russian oil. Some of that money no doubt went to equip Russian soldiers for their ongoing Ukrainian atrocity, as 40% of Russia’s state budget comes from fossil fuel exports.

Supporting war crimes or destroying the climate aren’t anyone’s intentions when they just want to get the kids to school. So why did we create an energy system that does just that?

Whether it’s for democracy, our economy or our planet’s future, it’s time to permanently break Hawaii’s nearly 2-billion-gallon-per-year oil addiction.

Oil lubricates dictators and violence worldwide. While we’ve (temporarily) turned away from Russian oil, we continue to buy oil from corrupt regimes. Over half of Hawaii’s oil last year originated in Libya — a country torn apart by oil-funded militias and a supplier of terrorist arms and financing. Saudi Arabia holds the largest lever controlling oil prices — a country that recently executed 81 men in one day, some of whom for the capital offense of holding “deviant beliefs.” We know oil and drinking water don’t mix; neither do oil and democracy.

Some believe that we can just shift from hostile to friendly oil sources, such as the mainland. But because oil is fungible and freely traded, its flow will simply reequilibrate to satisfy whatever demand exists. The only sure way to stop oil’s corrupting effects is to stop oil.

Irrespective of source, oil is priced by the global market and we’re at its mercy. Hawaii exported some $34 billion over the past decade. When the price of oil jumps $10 per barrel, we export an additional half-billion dollars per year — with nothing new to show for it.

But the real cost isn’t in buying the oil, it’s the price we pay once we burn it. Global carbon levels, as measured right here in Hawaii, are at record highs. And that’s unequivocally driving catastrophic climate change.

Last month temperatures in Antarctica jumped 50 to 90 degrees above normal. At the same time, an ice sheet 80% the size of Oahu calved off into the ocean, shocking scientists. If all of East Antarctica’s ice melts, sea levels would rise more than 160 feet. This is only one of the many devastating ways the climate crisis comes ashore in Hawaii.

Hawaii has made decent progress on renewable energy, but we still emit more carbon per person than over 90% of the world. So what might a rapid oil change look like?

Transportation — particularly jet travel — consumes the most oil in Hawaii. Hawaii should join the European Union in requiring an increasing amount of jet fuel from sustainable sources. Sustainable aviation fuels can be produced from wastes, crops, nonfossil carbon dioxide or renewable hydrogen. Infrastructure support for local fuel production should complement the mandate.

Ground transportation is easier. We can now choose cars that take us to work in the morning without supporting war in the afternoon. Washington State recently enacted a law prohibiting the sale of gasoline cars after model year 2030. While Hawaii’s Legislature shelved a similar bill this year, they still have time to act on another critical measure: HB 1800. The original bill required a 70% decrease in Hawaii’s carbon emissions by 2030. Setting an enforceable carbon limit at any level would help catalyze the transition to nonoil alternatives across our economy.

Making such systemic change won’t be easy — but doing what’s right rarely is. With Russia bringing the world to the brink of nuclear war and the planet’s life support system teetering, the choice is simple: End oil before it ends us.

Jeff Mikulina is a longtime sustainability advocate in Hawaii.