Saudi Arabia looks beyond planting to restore its desert landscapes

RIYADH: As the Saudi Green Initiative moves from setting targets to delivering results, a central challenge remains: How can the Kingdom grow more than 600 million trees by 2030 without placing further pressure on its scarce water resources?

More than 159 million trees had been planted and 1 million hectares of degraded land restored by early 2026, the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture announced in March.

Thomas Crowther, professor of environmental science and engineering at KAUST, told Arab News that the target is achievable, but success will depend on more than planting trees.

“That scale of regeneration is undoubtedly possible, but the key to success will not only be the ‘planting’ of trees,” he said.