Cayetano, who chairs the Senate committee on health, environment and natural resources, also cited the environmental benefits of using coco-biodiesel as one of the major considerations in pushing for the passage of the measure.
"With the Philippines’ worsening air quality, it is high time that efforts be made to address these problems," Cayetano said in the explanatory note to Senate Bill No. 2083.
Studies conducted by the Department of Energy showed that even with a one-percent blend of coco biodiesel, the harmful emissions from motor vehicles are reduced significantly. The studies found that suspended particulate matter, which causes smog, is reduced by 60 percent and nitrogen oxide by 20 percent.
"The utilization of biodiesel in automotive diesel engines showed a marked reduction in vehicular air emissions that greatly contribute to different environmental and health problems," Cayetano said.
In a statement, she also cited a study conducted by the World Bank that found the Philippines spends at least $400 million yearly to treat diseases directly and indirectly attributable to air pollution such as cancer, tuberculosis, pneumonia and other upper respiratory infections.
"Up to 200 more persons with cardiovascular diseases and up to 330 more persons with respiratory ailments died in 2002 because the air was so bad," read the Public Health Monitoring (PHM) study released in August 2004.
The PHM study, which was conducted jointly by the Asian Development Bank and the World Health Organization, recorded 10,000 more cases of acute bronchitis, and nearly 300 more cases of asthma in 2002 compared to the year before it.
Hospitals also admitted 20 more patients with respiratory ailments and another 40 with cardiovascular problems. In all, there were around 10,300 more cases of pollution-related illnesses in 2002 compared to the previous year.
The same study cited pollution from motor vehicles as the "breakaway source of air pollution in Metro Manila."
Apart from Cayetano’s initiative, other bills pending in the Senate are calling for the mandatory blending of biodiesel and promoting its use, including Senate Bill 2007 authored by Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago and Senate Bill 2178 authored by Sen. Manuel Roxas II.
Cris Michelena, convenor of The Philippine Biodiesel Association (TPBA), said the problem of air pollution has reached alarming proportions.
"Filipinos are not just getting sick, they are literally dying because of the poor quality of air," he said.
Michelena also pointed out that the problem translates into additional costs shouldered by the economy. "If people are sick and they cannot work, then there is less productivity and slower business growth for industries," he said.
TPBA, which leads the advocacy for the biodiesel mandate, said the measure will also address the need for fuel cost savings because biodiesel increases mileage by between 10 percent and 17 percent, and translates into savings for the consumers.
It also promotes energy independence, which is becoming increasingly important in the light of dwindling oil reserves in the world market.
It has been projected that the present supply of oil can only last up to 20 years, thus making it imperative to find other sources of fuel for motor vehicles and industries as well.
"Most of all, the biodiesel mandate will revive the ailing coconut industry by improving farmgate prices and stabilizing the domestic price of domestic oil," Michelena added.
At present, there are five brands of biodiesel available in the market — BioActiv, Biomaxx, Bioexceed, Envirotek and Estrol.