In 2012 the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s Presidency of Meteorology and Environment (PME) produced a new National Environmental Standards, which included 3 different air quality standards, these are:
Their purpose of each Standard differs, however they were overall to set out sustainable management of the air quality.
The ambient air quality standard introduced a baseline standard for air quality which will maintain and/or improve health and the natural ecosystem, whilst allowing for social economic development. This forms the basis for the ArRiyadh Air Quality Management Project, and the standards (or limits and levels / concentrations) are set out below
The mobile source emission standard is for individual pieces of equipment beyond normal vehicles, again to maintain and/or improve the quality of life, health or natural ecosystems again allowing for social economic development.
Finally for stationary (point) sources to obligate operators to implement control technologies or best abatement techniques to meet emission criteria, and to prescribe / establish the monitoring programmes to help implement the emissions criteria.
The effective date for these standards is 01/05/1433H, which corresponds to 24/03/2012G. With compliance immediately for all but the mobile standard, which provides a 5 year grace for some relevant facilities.
All the standards discuss a competent agency to monitor, enforce and be overall responsible for the implementation of the standards. All these standards discuss enforcement, scope, powers of authority, penalties, as well as many other relevant points of order. Each document should be referred to for greater information.
