Manila, June 12 -- Senator Sherwin Gatchalian on Thursday underscored the need for a regulatory framework for nuclear energy to ensure its safety and sustainability, and address concerns for its possible domestic use.

"A comprehensive regulatory framework is important given the country's growing energy demand, a portion of which could be met by nuclear energy," he said in a statement.

Gatchalian, vice chair of the Senate Committee on Energy, is one of the authors of Senate Bill 2899, which calls for the establishment of a Philippine Atomic Regulatory Authority.

The bill hurdled the third and final reading on Monday.

He said the agency "will have regulatory control over all sources of ionizing radiation, including nuclear and radioacti...