Cairo: Saudi Arabia has instituted a new system to protect the marine environment with strict penalties that includes imprisonment of up to 10 years and fines reaching SR30 million.
Under the new system, environmental crimes causing damage to water resources, such as pollution resulting from chemicals or waste, are liable to fines ranging from SR1 million to 30 million, depending on the seriousness of the crime and its impact on the marine environment.
The penalties will be meted out against individuals and companies involved in such violations. The kingdom’s public prosecution has warned that the new environment law will be enforced to protect marine zones and water resources as part of the kingdom’s environment protection efforts.
In 2021, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman launched the Saudi Green Initiative (SGI), a plan pursuing three overarching targets, namely emission reduction, afforestation and land regeneration, as well as land and sea protection.
Envisaged as whole-of-society action, SGI strives to unite all of the kingdom’s work to combat climate change under one umbrella with clear-cut objectives including accelerating green transition.
The initiative envisages reducing carbon emissions by more than 4% of global contributions, through renewable energy projects to provide 50% of electricity production in the kingdom by the year 2030, and projects in the field of clean hydrocarbon technologies.
Last October, a roadmap to reach a 10 billion tree target was unveiled at the MENA Climate Week held in Riyadh.
More than 95 million trees have been planted across Saudi Arabia since the kingdom launched SGI, according to recent official figures.
The tree expansion was the result of efforts made by a national afforestation programme in conjunction with governmental, private sector and non-profit agencies.
Over the past three years, more than 111,000 hectares of degraded land have been rehabilitated along with the protection of 4.3 million hectares of land, the National Centre for Vegetation Cover Development and Combating Desertification said last week.
