The State Council on Sept 16 approved the overall city plan for Yantai in East China’s Shandong province, urging local government to build a “modern city of economic prosperity and social harmony”.

As a central city and important port on the Shandong Peninsula, Yantai will pursue integrated development and management of urban and rural areas in the next five years.

Covering 3,002 square kilometers of a planned zone, the city will enhance infrastructure and public facilities that will better serve peripheral villages and further connect with neighboring cities such as Qingdao and Weihai.

The layout of public service facilities, such as education, medical care and municipal administration, is expected to be further optimized to ensure equality between urban and rural citizens. The urban transportation system and disaster prevention system are also likely to be improved.

According to the plan, Yantai’s permanent residents will be kept below 2.3 million until 2020, while the area of land for urban development will not be allowed to exceed 255 square kilometers. The city should raise the efficiency of land use and safeguard the farmlands.

The State Council also called on Yantai to eliminate outdated production facilities to build a resource-conserving and environment-friendly city.

In addition, the city will also enhance its capabilities on waste treatment and take measures to protect historic sites, as well as some special ecological functional zones, such as Ya Mountain in Qixia county.