A resident wearing a face mask walk along a beach in Borocay. AFP/File

President Rodrigo Duterte on Tuesday, extended the term of Boracay inter-agency task force in charge of rehabilitation of the tourist destination until June 2022 following massive disruption of the critical program due to pandemic and quarantine restrictions.

Amending Executive Order 147, the body would be “deemed dissolved on 30 June 2022, unless extended or sooner terminated by the President. The task force created in 2018 to “reverse” degradation of the island paradise.

About 80 percent of Boracay establishments are now compliant with beach easement rules as of April, said Duterte, quoting the task force’s accomplishment report.

He said the 160 cases filed by government led to the settlement of fines, while all beaches, except the Tulubhan outfall, are now “suitable for recreational activities.”

Two of 9 wetlands in the island “have been fully recovered from illegal settlers,” he noted among other accomplishments.

Boracay was closed to tourists for half a year in 2018 as the government embarked on a 6-month cleanup and rehabilitation of the island.

The steady flow of tourists to the island, famous for its powdery white sand, has led to overcrowding and environmental degradation over the years.

Authorities shuttered Boracay from Aug. 7 to Sept. 7 when Aklan province returned to the second strictest lockdown level to curb COVID-19 cases. The holiday island reopened last Wednesday.

Duterte late last month lifted a moratorium on casino operations in Boracay to generate taxes for COVID-19 pandemic response.