The State Council has approved a national territorial spatial plan for Lhasa, for the 2021-2035 period, according to an official reply released on Jan 17.

As the capital city of Southwest China’s Xizang autonomous region, Lhasa is a national historical and cultural city and a national comprehensive transportation hub.

According to the reply, by 2035, the total area of cultivated land in Lhasa should be at least 0.7661 million mu, the red line area for ecological protection should not be less than 9,674.59 square kilometers, and the urban development area should be controlled within 230.55 square kilometers.

Lhasa is asked to deeply integrate into the joint construction of the Belt and Road, and align its development with those in the Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle, the reply said.

Efforts should be made to protect the ecological environment of the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau and strengthen ecological protection and restoration throughout the region.

While expanding the production space for plateau characteristic agriculture and animal husbandry, and ensuring the space demand for modern agriculture on the plateau, Lhasa should improve the functional structure and spatial layout of cities, coordinate industrial layout, comprehensive transportation, facility layout and land use, and give priority to ensuring the space demand for the development of service industries such as culture and tourism, according to the reply.

Measures should also be taken to support the infrastructure construction of aviation, railway and highway, said the reply, adding that adequate space for major infrastructure should be reserved and the construction of the national clean energy base should be accelerated.

Furthermore, the reply stated that the layout of public service facilities in the urban and rural areas should be coordinated, the balance and accessibility of basic public services should be enhanced, and the level of land conservation and intensive utilization should be improved.

The reply also noted the establishment of a sound spatial protection mechanism for cultural and natural heritages, and strengthening the protection of the Potala Palace Complex.

Meanwhile, the guidance over the spatial elements such as building height, volume and color in the historical and cultural block of Barkhor Street and the surrounding areas of the historical complex of the Potala Palace in Lhasa should be strengthened.