E China city man becomes first to own an island

A businessman from Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, has become the first person in China to own an island after buying an uninhabited one in Zhejiang Province for 3.44 million yuan ($540,000) on Tuesday. He will own the property rights for 50 years, China National Radio (CNR) reported. Huang Yimin, the head of tourism company Xiangshan Marine Travel In Holiday, was granted the certificate of use right for Danmenshan Island in Ningbo by officials from both the State Oceanic Administration and the Zhejiang Province Ocean and Fisheries Bureau on Tuesday. He said he would develop the island into a tourism resort, according to CNR. "We started to manage and develop the island in 2009, and we are developing a new tourism program - island hunting. So, we are raising game animals such as wild boar, goats and pheasants in the hunting area," a staff member surnamed Gu with Huang's company told the Hangzhou-based Qianjiang Evening News. Gu added the number of tourists on the island will be limited to fewer than 200 every day to protect the island and to ensure safe hunts, the Qianjiang Evening News reported. Calls from the Global Times to Xiangshan Marine Travel In Holiday went unanswered Wednesday. The news about Huang's purchase was confirmed by an anonymous staff member with the public relations department of the Zhejiang Province Ocean and Fisheries Bureau. "But the island owner should also shoulder the responsibilities of managing and preserving the ecological system on the island," Lu Caixia, a deputy director of the island management office with the State Oceanic Administration, told the Qianjiang Evening News. The plan for protection and use of Danmenshan Island was approved by Xiangshan county in Ningbo this September. The detailed plan for developing the island was approved by the Ningbo and Zhejiang governments.