The United States no longer needs to conserve oil as domestic production increases have reduced the need for imports. As a result, the United States has been given “more flexibility than in the past to use our oil resources with less concern,” the Associated Press reports , citing a memo from the Department of Energy. In the same memo, the DoE added a general note about oil conservation by expressing a belief that energy needs to be used wisely, without going into detail. The AP notes that the memo effectively challenges previous attempts to conserve energy, including ones that have become legislation, such as the mileage standard. Related to this, earlier this month reports emerged that the administration planned to freeze the mileage standard instead of requiring carmakers to improve new cars’ energy efficiency further. This, media suggested, would pit Washington against states that have voluntarily stipulated higher mileage […]