Environmental penalties in the UAE range from AED 500 to AED 10 million, depending on the nature and severity of the offence. The highest penalty applies to certain serious violations involving nuclear materials and waste and should not be regarded as a general fine for all forms of illegal waste disposal.

Under the Federal Law on Environmental Protection and Development, certain offences involving the import, transport, burial, discharge, storage or disposal of nuclear materials and waste can carry fines of up to AED 10 million. By comparison, under the Federal Law on Integrated Waste Management, private companies may face fines of up to AED 1 million for illegally burying, burning or dumping waste on roads, in open areas, waterways or other unauthorised locations.

In Dubai, the Waste Management Law sets a maximum fine of AED 500,000 for offences covered by the legislation. If the same offence is repeated within one year, the fine may be doubled, provided the total does not exceed the prescribed maximum.

Dubai’s schedule of penalties also sets specific fines for individual offences. Disposing of hazardous waste at an unauthorised site carries a fine of AED 50,000, operating in the waste management sector without a permit AED 10,000, burning waste in the open AED 1,000, and littering in public places AED 500.

Separate penalties apply to sewage-related offences. Illegal sewage discharge in Dubai carries a fine of AED 100,000, while sewage leaking or overflowing from buildings or vacuum tankers onto public roads can result in a fine of AED 10,000. Improper disposal or leakage of used oil carries a fine of AED 3,000.

Penalties are not limited to fines. Dubai authorities may suspend a business’s operations, revoke its licence, temporarily or permanently close its premises, or impound vehicles involved in violations. Offenders may also be required to remove pollution and cover the cost of restoring the affected environment. If the municipality carries out the work, it may recover the costs from the offender, along with a 25 per cent administrative fee.

The regulations have come under renewed attention after Dubai Police recently took legal action against 18 suspects in a case involving the illegal discharge of sewage and petrochemical waste, and impounded 17 tankers linked to the offences.