Filling the nation’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve when crude oil is trading at near-record highs doesn’t make sense, says Maine Sen. Susan Collins.

Moreover, the practice is taking oil off the world markets, contributing to ever-higher prices, the Republican suggests.

Collins joined with three other senators – a Republican, a Democrat and an independent – on Thursday to call on Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman to temporarily pull the hose from the SPR.

“It makes no sense whatsoever for the Department of Energy to purchase more oil for the SPR at a time when prices are at record highs,” said Collins in announcing her effort. “The department should not be taking oil off the market and adding to pressures on supplies when consumers are struggling to heat their homes and fill their gas tanks.”

Energy Department spokeswoman Megan Barnett told The Associated Press the amount of oil going into the reserve is less than one-tenth of 1 percent of the daily global oil consumption.

The nation’s Energy Information Service pegs the world’s crude oil production at about 60 million barrels a day.

In early November, the SPR – essentially salt caverns along the Gulf Coast – contained 694 million barrels of oil. Its capacity is over 720 million barrels.

Joined by Sens. Carl Levin, D-Mich., Joseph Lieberman, I-Conn., and Norm Coleman, R-Minn., Collins says she believes that the continued filling of the SPR will cause increased demand on the oil market, increasing oil prices on both the wholesale and consumer levels.

She also said filling the reserve now might violate law.

“DOE has not presented any compelling national security justification for buying oil at this time, and its actions certainly appear to be contrary to the Levin-Collins provisions of the 2005 Energy Act.”

That act requires the DOE to only buy oil for the SPR if the purchases “avoid incurring excessive cost or appreciably affecting the price of petroleum products to consumers” and “avoid adversely affecting current and futures prices, supplies, and inventories of oil.”

President Bush, who built much of his personal fortune in the Texas oil industry, has steadfastly refused to release oil from the SPR to drive down consumer costs and has previously refused pleas to stop filling the SPR.

Oil briefly exceeded $100 per barrel last week. A barrel holds 42 U.S. gallons.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.