A proposal has died in the Delaware House that would have required service stations selling diesel fuel to convert to a biodiesel mix starting in 2006.

The bill, which Gov. Ruth Ann Minner called for in her State of the State address, remained in the House Transportation Committee at the close of the session June 30, effectively killing it for the year. It had previously cleared the Senate.

Known as SB321 and sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Harris McDowell III, D-Wilmington North, the bill was intended to help clean the air by reducing pollution from diesel engines.

It also would have aided soybean farmers by expanding the market for their crops, The News Journal reported.

The bill would have required service stations to sell an 80-20 mix of biodiesel. The fuel is made by blending diesel oil with vegetable oils and animal fat.

The biomaterial helps replace sulfur as a lubricant in diesel fuel and reduces emissions of hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide and soot.

“It helps reduce our dependence on foreign oil, and it’s a boost to our farming industry,” McDowell told the newspaper. It would have added about 2 cents a gallon to the cost of fuel.

The anticipated price boost likely contributed to the bill’s ultimate demise, said Sen. Colin Bonini, R-Dover South.

“I think the idea is good. I think we’re all for helping farmers and a clean environment,” Bonini said. “But I think we need to be honest and say we’re putting a 2-cent-a-gallon tax on it, and that troubles me because I think fuel prices are high enough without our help.”