The State Council approved national territorial spatial planning to be implemented in Shandong province, according to an official reply released on Sept 26.

According to the circular, by 2035, the total area of cultivated land in Shandong will reach no less than 94.911 million mu, of which the protection area for permanent basic farmland will be no less than 84.122 million mu. Meanwhile, the circular stressed that the red line for ecological protection shall not be less than 20,600 square kilometers.

To underpin new development patterns, the circular also stressed implementing strategies in coordinated regional development, functional zones and new urbanization, rural revitalization, maritime power, and other major regional strategies.

More measures will be taken to strengthen coordination and linkage between city clusters on the Shandong Peninsula and the provinces along the Yellow River, as well as promote ecological protection and high-quality development in the Yellow River Basin, the circular said.

To build it into a strategic point for the domestic circulation and a strategic hub for both domestic and international circulations, efforts will be made to align the plan with the coordinated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta, the construction of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the comprehensive revitalization of the Northeast.

In addition, the protection and restoration of ecosystems along the Yellow River, the coast, the Grand Canal, as well as wetlands, estuaries and bays will be strengthened, high water- consumption and high-pollution industries on both sides of the main stream and major tributaries of the Yellow River will be restricted, and groundwater extraction will be prohibited and restricted, it said.

The circular also noted concentrated development for the fishery industry in the Laizhou Bay, Weihai and Rizhao waters and improved core functions of Jinan metropolitan area and Qingdao metropolitan area.