Design and sustainability
Water, soil, shade and a rebuilt wadi: the engineering and nature stories behind turning a runway into a living park.
From airbase to park: the story so far
Launched in March 2019 on Riyadh's old airport, King Salman Park is now preparing a phased soft opening. Here is the timeline, the phases and what is still being confirmed.
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How do you water a million trees in a desert?
Riyadh gets about 101 mm of rain a year and loses nearly twenty times that to evaporation. The park's answer is a loop of recycled water, deep soil and a very large treatment plant.
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A valley where a runway used to be
The park stands on Riyadh's old airfield. Its designers are cutting the flat ground into branching wadis that shade, hold water and carry floods.
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Shade, breeze and cool air
A walk through the layers the park uses against Riyadh's heat: shaded paths, planting zones, local-stone walls and a 60,000-tonne district cooling system.
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Inside the Royal Arts Complex
Seven venues, a Bofill-designed line of buildings and a museum whose height is given as 106 or 110 metres. Here is what is known, and what is still waiting on a handover.
Read more →Nature, in numbers
Trees, green space and water as published by the people building it, each with source and date.
| Share of irrigation from treated effluent |
100%
ParsonsApr 2025Parsons
Planned share of irrigation demand, per Parsons · as of Apr 2025
Medium confidence
|
|---|---|
| Planting this season |
About 4 million plants, 50,000 to 60,000 a day
MEEDSep 2026
MEED, 30 Sep 2026; plants, not trees · as of Sep 2026
Medium confidence
|
| Height difference |
30 m between highest and lowest points
RIBA JournalMar 2026
RIBAJ, quoting the designers · as of Dec 2025
Medium confidence
|
| Green and open space |
More than 11 km²
King Salman Park Founda…Jan 2025Royal Commission for Ri…
Green areas and open spaces as the Royal Commission lists them (more than 11 million m²), matching the Foundation's 2025 brochure (about 11 million m² of greenery). 'Green' definitions differ between sources. · as of Jan 2025
11.6 km² (about 70%) ParsonsAl Madina
Parsons' figure, about 70% of its 17.2 km² footprint. Arabic press (Al Madina, January 2024) also says more than 11.6 km².
9.3 million m² Al Madina
Green areas and open squares as listed in a January 2024 component list; an older tally that excludes some categories. · Jan 2024
6.4 million m² (2019) Ajel
Green space as stated in the 2019 launch component table, when the announced site was 13.4 km². · Mar 2019
|
| Trees planned |
About 1.1 million trees
King Salman Park Founda…Jan 2025MEEDJun 2023
Planting target in the Foundation's 2025 brochure (1.1 million), consistent with the 1.1 million trees reported for the landscaping contracts in 2023. A target, not a count of trees planted; no cumulative planted total has been published. · as of Jan 2025
More than 1 million trees ParsonsRoyal Commission for Ri…Al Madina
Round figure on the Royal Commission page, on Parsons' page and in Arabic press: 'more than a million'. Compatible with 1.1 million.
Medium confidence
|
| Plant species |
About 700 species
King Salman Park Founda…Jan 2025IllustrarchFeb 2026
Total plant species in the Foundation's 2025 brochure, echoed by Illustrarch in February 2026 (700+, about half indigenous). We lead with the owner's figure; Gerber, quoted by RIBA Journal in March 2026, says 800. · as of Jan 2025
800 species RIBA Journal
Number the landscape designer says it specified, quoted by RIBA Journal in March 2026. A design specification, which can differ from what a brochure counts. · Mar 2026
Medium confidence
|
| Plants this season |
About 4 million plants
MEEDSep 2026RIBA JournalMar 2026
Planting planned this season at 50,000 to 60,000 plants a day, per MEED on 30 September 2026. These are plants, not trees. About 30,000 specimens a day were reported in late 2025 (RIBA Journal). · as of Sep 2026
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