The State Council on Feb 22 approved the overall plan for Xiamen, a southern city in Fujian province.

The plan was submitted by the Fujian provincial government, for the development of Xiamen city from 2011 to 2020.

Covering 1,699.39 square kilometers, Xiamen is one of China’s special economic zones as well as a major southern port and tourism city.

The plan is aimed at achieving innovative, coordinated, green, open and inclusive development in Xiamen.

Efforts should be made to boost the integration of Xiamen, Zhangzhou, and Quanzhou cities, with the overall goal of industrial distribution, and promote coordinated construction and share regional major infrastructures, the State Council said.

In terms of city scale, the plan will work to control the city’s permanent resident population within 5 million and land use for urban construction within 440 square kilometers.

According to the law regarding urban and rural development planning, unplanned development zones and new districts are banned from setting up in the city, the State Council said.

In addition, the plan aims to build Xiamen into a sponge city that is resource-conserving and environment-friendly.

Strengthened efforts should be made to protect special ecological functional regions of Xiamen, including the Gulangyu island-Wan Shishan Scenic area, natural reserve areas, wet land, and water resource, the State Council said.