by James Loyola

Manila Bulletin Online
Sunday, October 5, 2008

Federation of Philippine Industries president Jess Arranza said "local industries will be waiting with great anticipation for the results of the recently established Chemrez Green Chemistry Awards."

The Awards will be part of the DoST-sponsored National Inventors’ Week contests and exhibits from November 17-21 at the PTTC on Roxas Boulevard, Pasay City.

Deadline for submission of entries to the competitions is extended to close of office hours at 5 p.m. on October 15, 2008 at the Technology Applications Promotions Institute at the DoST compound in Taguig. Application forms are available at the website tapi.dost.gov.ph.

"Local industries and the buying public will benefit greatly from new products and even processes that are ecologically-friendly. We need these innovations to meet the public clamor for such products and processes to add vigor to our industries once more," Arranza added.

Current thinking in corporate social responsibility (CSR) also identify such eco-friendly initiatives as being highly appreciated by the Filipino consumer.

Dean Lao Jr., Chief Operating Officer of Chemrez Technologies, the country’s largest and leading producer of biodiesel and sponsor of the Awards, identifies fully with such corporate social responsibility thinking.

"Chemrez and its affiliates have long embraced the new philosophy of Green Chemistry in its research and development efforts. We continue to develop products with an eye towards giving local industries the edge in this area of social responsibility," he said.

Chemrez developed its biodiesel to help stop global warming. Aside from biodiesel, it offers up some other products as examples of ‘green chemistry’ applications.

BioSol is a line of degreasers that is plant-based and environment-friendly. It allows oils and fuels to be cleaned without the use of soaps and detergents that emulsify the waste into a sludge of oil-water-detergent that will not separate from each other and eventually end up clogging the sewage system or, worse, find its way into our waterways killing marine life.

A variant is BioSol Spill Rx is designed for oil spills in seas and oceans. It disperses the oil into tiny globules that can then undergo biodegradation. This product was designed as a solution for the Guimaras oil spill.

It even frees and breaks up the oil trapped in sandy and rocky beaches, marshes and even coastal vegetation. As a local product, it is more readily available without long delivery periods and costs a fraction of imported solutions.

Eco-friendly and non-toxic replacements for harmful solvents and thinners for use in the paint and plastic industries are also available in the Chemrez line.