Article 28 of the Saudi Waste Management Law

This article regulates inspection and detecting violations, in four paragraphs:

1- Inspectors: inspectors designated by a decision of the Minister, together or individually, detect, record and investigate violations of the Law and the Implementing Regulations, and the Implementing Regulations set their working mechanisms. This is without prejudice to Article 30, which makes the Public Prosecution responsible for investigating and prosecuting the violations referred to in Article 29 before the competent court.

2- Powers of the inspector:

• Taking samples of materials and items at the facility suspected of committing a violation, if necessary, with drawing up a seizure report containing the data needed to verify the samples and their source, and keeping a copy of the facility's records and data, as the regulations specify.
• Seizing vehicles and tools used or suspected of being used in the violation, and handing them over as seized items to the competent body, and this is at the violator's expense if the violation is established. The seizure must be submitted to the competent court within no more than seven days for it to confirm or cancel it.

3- Ban on obstruction: it is prohibited to prevent or obstruct an inspector from inspection and detection work, and the inspector must show his official card when exercising his jurisdiction.

4- Assignment: the Minister may assign some inspection and violation-detection tasks of an administrative nature to specialized and qualified companies, in accordance with the controls of the Implementing Regulations.

Article 29 punishes with imprisonment of up to ten years and a fine of up to thirty million riyals, or either, anyone who stores, burns, treats, sinks or disposes of waste in a way that poses a danger to public health or harm to the environment.

Anyone subject to inspection or seizure who wants to know their rights should consult a lawyer specialized in administrative or criminal matters.