Royal Decree No.106/2020 establishing the Environment Authority, determining its competences, and adopting its Organizational Structure.

This Decree consisting of 9 articles and 2 Annexes aims at establishing a public authority named the Environment Authority and subordinate to the Council of Ministers. The Authority has, among others, the following main tasks (i) propose policies, strategic plans, and requirements related to environmental protection and sustainability, pollution control, and nature conservation, and follow-up their implementation, evaluation, and development; (ii) secure the safety of the environment, combat pollution and preserve the various ecosystems; (iii) protect wildlife, preserve nature, preserve renewable resources, and work on using them in a sustainable manner; (iv) contribute to the development of scientific research horizons in the environmental fields, exchange experiences, and collect scientific data; (v) work on spreading awareness and instilling the concepts of the requirements of dealing with the environment among all segments of society, and consolidating the principles of preserving the environment and its natural resources; (vi) prepare draft laws and royal decrees related to the authority’s competencies; (vii) strengthen and develop cooperation in the competencies related to the authority with other concerned parties in countries and specialized regional and international organizations and institutions; (viii) work to implement the decisions emanating from international agreements related to the Authority to which the Sultanate is a party. All allocations, assets, rights, obligations, and holdings of the Ministry of Environment and Climate Affairs relating to the environment are hereby transferred to the Environment Authority (art.5). The phrase “Ministry of Environment and Climate Affairs” wherever it occurs concerning the environment is hereby replaced with the phrase “Environment Authority” (art.7).