<P> In July 2015, Filipino fishermen discovered large buoys and containment booms in Scarborough shoal, and assumed them to be of PRC origin . They were removed and towed back to the Philippine coast . In March 2016, in its Scarborough Contingency plan, the CSIS Asia Maritime transparency Initiative reported that satellite imagery had shown no signs of any land reclamation, dredging or construction activities in Scarborough shoal . Only one small Chinese civilian ship and two small Filipino trimaran fishing boats (bangkas) were seen, as has been normal for the past few years . </P> <P> In September 2016 during the ASEAN summit, the Philippine government claimed that a number of Chinese ships capable of land reclamation had collected at Scarborough shoal . This claim was denied by the PRC government . </P> <P> Also in September 2016, the New York Times reported that PRC activities at the Shoal continued in the form of naval patrols and hydrographic surveys . The PRC navy restricted Filipino fishermen access to the shoal from 2012 until August 2016, at which time PRC authorities started to allow Filipino fishermen to resume fishing in the shoal after talks between the Philippine President Duterte and his Chinese counterparts . However fishermen were prohibited from using dynamite fishing or other methods, including clam digging, that could harm the ecology of the reefs . </P> <P> In January 2017, the International Business Times reported the possibility of land reclamation at Scarborough shoal by the PRC . However, photos of the shoal posted by CSIS have, to date, not shown any evidence of reclamation activity . </P>

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