Apart from the still-riveting television images of flood recovery in New Orleans, the attention of most Americans has been on the impact Hurricane Katrina has had on gas prices.

Except for those living in the New Orleans and Gulf coastal areas, the drama of the hurricane will eventually turn to the drudgery of recovery, but the price of gasoline will continue to demand the attention of most Americans.

Hours after the devastating impact of Katrina was being first understood, gasoline prices spiked overnight to prices over $3 a gallon. In the past few days, there has been a slight retreat from those earlier prices. Still, today's gas prices are very close to the record levels (adjusted for inflation) set in the early 1980s.

Katrina demonstrated how vulnerable New Orleans was to hurricane and flooding damage. The storm also demonstrated how vulnerable the U.S. is to interruptions to the supply and production of gasoline.

The Gulf of Mexico is home to about 17 percent of this nation's refining capacity and also close to 25 percent of the domestic crude oil production. Katrina, and future hurricanes, threaten coastal refineries, transmission pipelines and off-shore rigs.

In the aftermath of the storm, it appears the oil industry's worst fears have not been realized. While Katrina caused significant damage, it could have been worse.

That news, in addition to the federal government's opening of the Strategic Petroleum Reserves have helped moderate prices - if prices still over $3 can be considered moderate.

At this point, it's unclear what will happen next. Gas prices could go up or could stabilize near their current levels. Few analysts believe prices will fall substantially.

But the negative impact of recently skyrocketing gas prices on individuals and businesses has rippled through state capitals and all the way to Washington, D.C.

Politicians in a handful of states are considering a temporary reduction or elimination of state gasoline taxes.

At the federal level, the conversation has ranged from finding ways to accelerate the construction of additional refining capacity to reducing the number of different blends of gasoline used in various regions across the nation to raising the mileage standards of cars sold in the United States.

The record profits flowing to oil companies has also rekindled the idea of a windfall profits tax. U.S. Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., has a plan for a windfall profits tax that would boost oil companies' tax rates whenever oil rose above $40 a barrel. Dorgan's idea is to take those windfall taxes and return them to consumers.

Dorgan admits that his plan still lacks details. In addition, it probably has little chance of passage in the Republican-controlled senate where government intervention into markets is not generally supported.

Still, the dramatic rise in gasoline prices linked to Katrina has reminded most Americans of the U.S. vulnerability to imported oil and to our overall dependence on gasoline and fossil fuels. While millions of Americans struggle to adjust their personal budgets to accommodate the much-higher gasoline prices, consumers will no doubt understand that the status quo is unsustainable.

The U.S. needs to begin to stress conservation and efficiency. It also needs to develop more domestic energy resources, including renewable sources such as bio-diesel and ethanol.

The near-panic reaction at gasoline stations and billion-dollar windfall profits for oil companies makes that crystal clear.