The government has suspended all sand dredging and clearing operations in rivers and offshore areas of Occidental Mindoro province to conduct comprehensive site assessments and update enhancement plans.

The Inter-Agency Committee on the Restoration of the Occidental Mindoro Rivers and its Tributaries issued Resolution No. 2, Series of 2025, ordering the suspension “until the site assessment and evaluation of the same are completed with the end in view of updating the respective River Delta Clearing and Shoreline Enhancement Plans.”

The resolution, approved and signed September 11, 2025, in Metro Manila, came after regional directors from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources recommended the temporary halt in an August 20, 2025 communication.

“According to them, this is necessary for the updating of the Occidental Mindoro River Delta Clearing and Shoreline Enhancement Plan, a necessary requirement prior to the conduct of any river restoration through dredging activities in the province,” the resolution says.

The suspension affects ongoing river restoration activities that were being conducted by qualified private proponents in the Amnay River, Pagbahan River, Lumintao River and Tubili River.

Occidental Mindoro Governor Eduardo Gadiano confirmed the suspension in a phone interview with Bambi FM San Jose, saying that authorities will conduct thorough assessments before allowing operations to resume.

He noted the need for “sufficient social preparation and social acceptance to ensure community acceptance of the project.”

The river restoration program is designed to “restore the natural state and water flow of the heavily-silted river systems and improve its hydraulic capacity thereby eliminating flooding, through dredging and desilting operations based on a comprehensive dredging plan.”

The resolution notes that “No funding from the government shall be made for the conduct of dredging activities by the private sector. Holders of dredging clearance shall provide the financing, technology, management and personnel necessary to implement dredging activities.”

The Inter-Agency Committee includes representatives from multiple government agencies working on environmental management and public works projects in the province.