Shandong province in east China plans to create man-made islands at Longkou Bay, Longkou, the qlwb.com.cn reported.

An unnamed official with the provincial marine department said a deserted hill would be removed and filled to the sea. "To be exact, we will not enclose the sea area. We plan to build more advanced off-shore islands," he said.

Each island will have water exchange with the outside to keep the sea clean. "It will cost about 10 billion yuan ($6.8 billion)," the official added.

The land department estimates the hill will provide 530 million cubic meters of soil and channel dredging will produce another 5.4 million cubic meters of soil, sufficiently supplying the 300 million cubic meters of soil needed to build the islands.

Treated garbage can also be used to fill the sea, which has been proven in Singapore, according to the land department.

"We guarantee the island is green and pollution-proof," an unnamed official added.

Longkou has a good investment environment but faces a lack of land. Many companies and factories have to relocate their businesses to other places to grow, according to reports.

"Each mu (666 sq m) of land costs 200 million yuan ($32 million), but the land will appreciate when the project is finished. Many companies are bidding for the land, so money is not an issue now," the official with the land department said.