THE Sanping Island in Jimo City and Ox Island in the economic development zone were approved for development by the State Oceanic Administration on April 13.

The two islands together with 174 others were listed as the first batch of uninhabited islands in China to be developed.

The Sanping Island, also called Big Island by locals, has been planned to develop tourism and marine research, and Ox Island will be intended as a tourist attraction.

The Ox Island will be included in the development plan of an international tourism island in the Phoenix Island Zone, according to a source within the city’s economic development zone administration.

There are 69 islands above 500 square meters in Qingdao, 60 of which are uninhabited. The city will build boundary monuments for all the islands within this year and draft regulations for their development.

The first batch of 176 uninhabited islands to be developed in China are located in Liaoning, Shandong, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi and Hainan.

(Yang Tongyu )