Executive Regulation for the protected areas.

The provisions of this Executive Regulation, which is made for purposes in and accordance with the Environmental Law, issued by the Royal Decree no. (m/165), dated 19/11/1441 Hijr, shall apply to all protected areas managed or supervised by the National Center for Wildlife Development within the Kingdom’s territory.
The National Center for Wildlife Development shall undertake the tasks related to protected areas, including: (1) Proposing protected areas in accordance with the provisions of this regulation; (2) Planning, managing, operating, and supervising the approved protected areas; (3) Protecting, growing, breeding, and monitoring the state of wildlife species, and restoring endangered species in protected areas and in their natural habitats to maintain a balanced biodiversity; (4) Setting requirements and controls pertaining to the development and implementation of plans for the rehabilitation of degraded habitats of wildlife species; (5) Supervising the implementation of programs and plans for the rehabilitation of degraded habitats of wildlife species; (6) Monitoring habitats of wildlife species; (7) Undertaking necessary relevant measures to ensure the application of requirements and controls during the implementation of plans for the rehabilitation of degraded habitats of wildlife species; (8) Issuing a list of service providers licensed by the Center to develop and implement plans for the rehabilitation of degraded habitats of wildlife species; (9) Identifying sites of degraded habitats that require rehabilitation, and determining the numbers and type of wildlife species living therein as well as rehabilitation requirements; (10) Establishing a database of degraded habitat sites for wildlife species; (11) Conducting studies and research and collecting all information and data on biodiversity in protected areas; (12) Coordinating with the National Center for Vegetation Cover and Combating Desertification about the development and protection of vegetation cover in protected areas, including herding; (13) Setting controls for entering and crossing protected areas, in coordination with the concerned authority at the Ministry of Interior; (14) Developing and implementing a management plan for the protected area system; (15) Establishing and regulating investment projects in protected areas and setting the necessary controls and requirements therefor; (16) Regulating the use of protected areas for tourism, environmental, scientific, research, and other purposes, and setting the necessary controls and requirements therefor; (17) Coordinating with the concerned authorities regarding the protection of archaeological and historical monuments located in the protected areas; (18) Developing environmental rules, requirements, and controls in its field of competency thereof for environmental licenses and permits for activities in protected areas; (19) Coordinating with the supervisory authorities regarding the application of environmental controls and requirements for licensed activities in protected areas; (20) Issuing licenses and permits - within its field of competency - for activities and works within the boundaries of the protected areas and collecting the financial dues therefor; (21) Coordinating with the National Center for Environmental Compliance regarding the application of Executive Regulations that fall within its field of competency in the protected areas; (22) Implementing national action programs and the application of the provisions of international and regional agreements regarding protected areas ratified by the Kingdom and entered into force; (23) Introducing protected areas and developing awareness programs about the objectives of establishing protected areas and developing wildlife; (24) Inspecting, monitoring, and apprehending all violations to this Executive Regulation; and coordinating with the security authorities at the Ministry of the Interior, whenever necessary, to apprehend violators; (25) Set the controls for removing infringements and rehabilitating the resulting damaged and degraded areas; (26) Issuing licenses for private reserves, including sustainable fishing reserves, in accordance with the requirements and controls specified thereby.
The proposed protected area shall be on a land that is not privately owned, and where no one has the right of jurisdiction, concession, or seizure. When the land is privately owned or someone has a right of jurisdiction or a concession, the issue shall be resolved with the holder of the jurisdiction to waive their right. In the event of no waiver, the map of the protected area shall either be modified, or an alternative shall be selected. If the holder does not waive their right and the Center deems that the site is important due to environmental considerations, a report shall be submitted to the Ministry to complete the procedures according to the applicable regulations. The Center shall identify the area proposed to be declared a protected area for wildlife based on studies showing the following: A) Environmental characteristics, features, and natural resources within the proposed area. B) Wildlife species and their habitats, propagation and distribution within the proposed area and their status. C) Pathways of wildlife species and migration. D) Socio-economic characteristics of the local community within and adjacent to the proposed protected area. E) Private and public properties in the proposed area. The Center shall develop a protected area proposal that includes the following: Purpose of establishing a protected area; Classification and zone of the protected area; Area of the proposed protected area and an indication of the boundaries thereof; A map showing the coordinates of the protected area and the most important landmarks that can be used for guidance; Summary of the results of the studies mentioned in Clause (1) of this Section; A statement of the permitted and prohibited activities within the protected area. International standards for the establishment of reserves, which were considered during the preparation of the proposal. The Center shall determine the scopes of protection based on the scientific, technical, and social studies conducted thereby for each protected area and levels of protection for each zone, while setting controls and requirements for activities within each zone.
This text further sets other relevant issues as follows: article (6): controls for entering and exiting from protected areas; article (7): permits and licenses related to activities in protected areas; article (8): permits and licenses related to private reservations; article (9): prohibitions; article (10): violations apprehension and penalties imposition.