4 MIN READ

By SHERWIN DE VERA
www.nordis.net

VIGAN CITY—It took the Department of Environment and Natural Resources Region 1 (DENR-1) just 24 hours to reconsider the cancellation of its dredging deal with Isla Verde Mining Development Corporation (IVMDC) despite its findings of multiple violations, including indiscriminate dredging.

Local environmental network Defend Ilocos Sur said the agency’s decision came with “no clear, transparent, or legitimate basis,” an action that contradicts the agency’s mandate to protect the environment. 

In a December 23 letter obtained by Nordis on January 8, DENR-1 granted IVMDC’s appeal to set aside its December 22 cancellation of the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA). The deal allows the company to commercially dispose of dredged materials from designated river zones. 

“IVMDC shall sign a Commitment with the Interagency Committee and Oppositors to strictly adhere to dredge only within duly validated/marked and delineated (River Dredging Zone),” DENR-1 Executive Director Crizaldy Barcelo 

Clio Nadine Rojas, spokesperson for Defend Ilocos Sur, criticized DENR-1 for backtracking despite acknowledging that IVMDC’s indiscriminate dredging caused ecological damage that cannot be quantified in monetary terms.

“It is a mockery of the very mandate of the DENR …given that Isla Verde’s violations were repeated, deliberate, and not minor,” she said in mixed Tagalog and English.

Residents, religious groups, and environmental organizations have raised concerns about the project’s ecological impacts, insufficient study, and inadequate community consultation.

In July last year, Defend Ilocos Sur filed a complaint with the Office of the President regarding the project. The Archdiocesan Council of the Laity also submitted a similar petition to the same office in October.

Multiple violations

Barcelo’s letter canceling the MOA stated that IVMDC disregarded the agreement and cited violations of environmental regulations. The cancellation takes effect immediately.

He said that since the agreement took effect in June 2022, IVDMC has not operated within the designated RDZ.  The company was given six months to dredge, from May 10 to November 10, 2024. 

However, it has been dredging offshore for its navigational channel for over a year, an area not covered by its original Environmental Compliance Certificate. The amended ECC, which includes the navigational channel, was issued only on November 12, 2025. 

“Regardless of the issuance of the amended ECC, fact remains that IVMDC, still was dredging outside permissible areas. Only one dredging vessel appeared to be operating within the RDZ and navigational channel,” Barcelo said.

He also noted that the company resumed operations on December 20, despite the moratorium still in effect and the show-cause order unresolved.

The Mines and Geosciences Bureau also flagged the company last year for transporting dredge materials without the required Ore Transport Permit (OTP)—281 in 2024 and another 44 as of October 2025. For these alone, the agency issued four show-cause orders, with corresponding notices of fines reaching P1.25 million in January 2025.

“The payments of fines and penalties for dredging outside the coverage of the ECC, the navigational channel and RDZ and the transport without OTP will not obliterate the violation and its effect on marine ecosystem,” Barcelo stated.

“Shameless betrayal”

Kalikasan People’s Network for the Environment said the reversal was a “shameless” decision that disregarded local concerns and environmental violations. “This victory was not just undermined—it was deliberately betrayed,” the group stated.

“In less than twenty-four hours, the agency exposed where its loyalty truly lies: not with the people who fought tooth and nail to stop dredging, but with corporate plunderers who need only send a letter to reverse accountability,” it added.

Local officials have justified the project as a flood-mitigation measure for Santa, Coayan, Vigan City, and Bantay. They have also assured the public that it is being monitored. 

Kalikasan linked the project to the ruling dynasty’s influence, citing the dredging’s defense by former Governor Luis “Chavit” Singson and his brother, incumbent Governor Jerry Singson. The Singson clan continues to dominate provincial politics with 18 members occupying elected positions.

“This defense is not neutral—it is rooted in bureaucrat capitalism, where political power is wielded to advance private business interests,” the group said.

Questionable track record

Rojas said DENR-1 should have given greater weight to violations rather than accepting mere promises from a company with “a questionable track record,” citing its repeated regulatory violations. 

“Not only has the DENR failed to strictly monitor the company’s operations, but it has also been slow to respond to community complaints,” she said. “Now, it reopens the door to a company proven to have consistently and willfully violated the law.”

“This development forces us to ask: why is DENR Region 1 so afraid to take decisive action to stop this destruction? Is something happening behind closed doors that makes the DENR so tolerant of these actions—or is it simply incapable of protecting the environment?” she added.#nordis.net