Article 48 of the Saudi Environment Law

This Article regulates the issuance of the Implementing Regulations of the Environment Law and the date they take effect, and contains three provisions:

1. Issuing authority: the Minister, who under Article 1 is the Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture. Under the definitions, the regulations are the Implementing Regulations of the Law.
2. Time limit for issuance: no more than 180 days from the date the Law is published in the Official Gazette.
3. Start of effect: from the date the Law comes into force, not from the date they are issued.

The meaning of the last provision becomes clear from Article 49, which provides that the Law takes effect 180 days after the date of its publication in the Official Gazette. The two periods are identical: the Minister issues the regulations within the 180 days following publication, and then the Law and its regulations begin to apply together on the same date. The purpose is that the Law is not applied before the implementation details are ready, and that those subject to the Law find the detailed provisions available when it comes into effect.

This Article is very important because many provisions of the Law refer to the regulations. Article 47 lists many matters set by the regulations, including permits and licenses and their fees, environmental supervision and inspection, noise pollution, environmental impact assessment studies, the basis for calculating compensation, and the plan for preparedness and response to environmental emergencies and disasters. Anyone who wants the implementation details of any of these matters should refer to the regulations that the Minister issues under this Article.

The Article does not state the date the Law was published or the date the regulations were actually issued; this information cannot be taken from the text.