Article 19 of the Saudi Environment Law
المادة 19 من نظام البيئة · الفصل الثالث: أراضي الغطاء النباتي
The article prohibits anything that harms vegetation cover lands or disturbs their natural balance, including cutting trees, leaving waste, lighting fires outside designated places and prohibited grazing.
Official text (Arabic)
This article has not been amended since the law was issued.
مع مراعاة ما ورد في المادة (الثامنة عشرة) من النظام؛ يُحظر كل ما من شأنه الإضرار بأراضي الغطاء النباتي، أو الإخلال بالتوازن الطبيعي فيها، وعلى وجه خاص ما يأتي:
1- قطع الأشجار أو الشجيرات أو الأعشاب أو النباتات، أو اقتلاعها أو نقلها أو تجريدها من لحائها أو أوراقها أو أي جزء منها، أو نقل تربتها أو جرفها، أو الاتجار بها.
2- ترك النفايات داخلها، أو دفنها، أو حرقها، أو رميها في غير الأماكن المخصصة لها التي تحددها الجهة المختصة.
3- إشعال النار داخلها في غير الأماكن المخصصة لذلك التي تحددها الجهة المختصة.
4- إتلاف منشآتها الثابتة أو المنقولة، أو قطع السياجات التي تضعها الجهة المختصة داخلها أو إتلافها، أو العبث في علاماتها الحدودية أو الإرشادية.
5- الرعي في المواقع والمدد المحظورة من الجهة المختصة.
6- إطلاق فيها أي من أنواع الكائنات الفطرية الحيوانية الدخيلة على البيئة أو الغازية.
This is the official Arabic wording, the only legally binding version. We do not translate the law itself; the explanation below is ours. Official source: Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers
Article 19 explained in plain English
This article is one of the Law's articles closest to everyday life, especially for people who go out into the wild and for picnickers. It prohibits anything that would harm vegetation cover lands or disturb their natural balance, and mentions six forms "in particular":
- Cutting trees, shrubs, grasses or plants, or uprooting, moving or stripping them of their bark, leaves or any part of them, or removing or scraping their soil, or trading in them.
- Leaving waste in them, or burying, burning or throwing it elsewhere than in the designated places the competent authority specifies.
- Lighting fires in them elsewhere than in the designated places the competent authority specifies.
- Damaging fixed or movable installations, or cutting or damaging the fences the competent authority puts up in them, or tampering with their boundary or guide markers.
- Grazing in the sites and periods the competent authority prohibits.
- Releasing into them any kind of animal wild organisms that are alien to the environment or invasive.
The phrase "in particular" means that these forms are prominent examples and not an exhaustive list; any act that harms these lands or disturbs their balance is prohibited.
The phrase "taking into account what is stated in Article 18" means that cultivation or tree planting in these lands remains subject to Article 18, which requires a license for it. It is followed by Article 20, which prohibits producing, transporting or selling local firewood or charcoal without a permit or license. If you are issued a violation notice in this regard, you can consult a lawyer specialized in environmental laws.
Practical example
A family went on a trip to the wild near Riyadh and lit a fire to cook in the middle of a meadow, away from the designated sites, and left their waste behind. Both acts are among the forms expressly prohibited in paragraphs 2 and 3 of Article 19.
Translated from our Arabic explanation with machine assistance. For guidance only; it does not replace advice from a lawyer on your situation.
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Frequently asked questions about Article 19 of the Saudi Environment Law
May a fire be lit in the wild?
Within vegetation cover lands, lighting fires elsewhere than in the designated places the competent authority specifies is prohibited.
Is taking branches or leaves from trees prohibited?
Yes. The article prohibits stripping trees or shrubs of their bark, leaves or any part of them, in addition to cutting or uprooting them.
Is grazing prohibited in vegetation cover lands?
What is prohibited is grazing in the sites and periods the competent authority prohibits.
Are the forms mentioned in the article the only ones prohibited?
No. The article prohibits anything that would harm these lands, and mentions the six forms in particular.
Articles this article refers to
More articles on Vegetation Cover and Logging
- Article 12
The article prohibits owning forest, rangeland and national, wilderness and geological park lands by any transfer of ownership, and prohibits encroaching on them by expansion or new construction.
1- لا يجوز تملك أراضي الغابات والمراعي والمنتزهات الوطنية والبرية والجيولوجية، بأي وجه من أوجه التصرف الناقل للملكية. 2- لا يجوز التعدي -سواء أكان بالتوسع أم با
- Article 13
The article provides for establishing national, wilderness and geological parks by decision of the Minister on land free of private rights, and allows the competent authority to invest in them and regulate that investment.
1- تنشأ -بقرار من الوزير- المنتزهات الوطنية والبرية والجيولوجية على أرض غير مملوكة ملكية خاصة وليس لأحد عليها حق اختصاص أو حجز أو امتياز. وفي حالة وجود أي من ذل
- Article 14
The article requires any person to obtain a permit before extracting or exploiting sand, gravel, rock or clay, as the regulations set out.
على أي شخص قبل القيام بنهل أو استغلال الرمل أو الحصى أو الصخور أو الطين؛ الحصول على تصريح، وذلك وفقاً لما تُبيّنه اللوائح.
- Article 15
The article requires a license to reclaim and level agricultural land and vegetation cover lands, without prejudice to Article 14 on the sand and gravel extraction permit.
دون إخلال بما ورد في المادة (الرابعة عشرة) من النظام، يشترط لاستصلاح الأرض الزراعية وأراضي الغطاء النباتي وتسويتها؛ الحصول على ترخيص وفقاً لما تُبيّنه اللوائح.
- Article 16
The article prohibits any activity or work within vegetation cover lands, or in urban lands with vegetation cover supervised by the competent authority, without a permit or license.
1- تُحظر ممارسة أي نشاط أو عمل داخل أراضي الغطاء النباتي؛ دون الحصول على تصريح أو ترخيص، وذلك وفقاً لما تبينه اللوائح. 2- تُحظر ممارسة أي نشاط أو عمل في الأراضي
- Article 17
The article requires the license holder and permit holder, when using vegetation cover lands in their activities, to take environmental considerations into account and use the soil rationally.
على كل من المرخص له والمصرح له -عند استخدامه أراضي الغطاء النباتي في تنفيذ أنشطته- الأخذ بالاعتبارات البيئية، والالتزام بالاستخدام الرشيد للتربة؛ وذلك وفقاً لما
The texts are reproduced from the official website of the Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers for reference; where they differ, the officially published Arabic text prevails. This content is not legal advice.