Like many of the notions and ideals of today, the concept of conservation also finds its roots in Ancient Egyptian civilization. A detailed understanding of the environment has existed over many millennia and can be seen on ancient temple inscriptions such as that of Queen Hatshepsut (circa 1540 B.C), which illustrates a wildlife expedition to the Land of Punt. Wildlife was frequently illustrated in many of Egypt's temples and monuments suggesting that there was some form of nature protection at a very early date. Concern with, and interest in, the study of wild species of plants and animals and observing their life cycles and ecological behaviour as related to natural phenomena was part of the cultural traditions of Egypt throughout its long history. In Pharaonic Egypt certain species were held sacred such as the sacred ibis or the sacred scarab. Many of the Egyptian Gods either had animal features or were themselves animals. Furthermore many species during that period were protected as public property because of their economic importance. The basic priciples of this trend were maintained the by succeeding civilizations which came to be in Egypt such as the Greeks, the Romans, the Arabs, and Ottomans.

In Sinai, traditional forms of protection of the environment still exists today and is self imposed by the Bedouin Tribes themselves. In this regard, a number of areas are considered as sacred under the traditional law of these tribes, such as at Mount Sinai where permanent hunting bans were enforced by the local populace. At Gabal Elba the nomadic communities maintain restraints, through tribal and Islamic religious dictates, on the over exploitation of natural resources. Community protection is also known to exist, where the conservation of the ancestral wadis is passed on from father to son.

Conservation legislation in Egypt started under Ottoman law based on Islamic Shari'a where it was defined that land and the associated trees growing wild in mountains could not be possessed and should remain without an owner. The first conservation legislation this century came into being with the creation of the Egyptian Royal hunting reserve at Wadi Rishrash in 1900. In 1936, Egypt became party to the 1933 Convention of the Preservation of Fauna and Flora in their Natural Habitat. This has since been followed by signing and ratifying many similar conventions and agreements. Egypt, has in fact been a pioneer in the field of conservation.

By 1966, Egypt enacted Law 53 in which the hunting of, or the destruction of habitat of birds and other wild animals that are useful to agriculture was prohibited. The following year, Ministerial decree 28 of 1967 specified the species of birds and other wild animals under protection covered by article 117 of the previous law. Law 72 was passed in 1968 dealing with the prevention of pollution of sea water by oil.

Despite common belief that Ras Mohamed is the first protected site in Egypt, It was in fact second to El Omayed which was acquired by the University of Alexandria and proclaimed a protected site in 1974. The first legislation to institutionalize conservation was Ministerial decree 349 of 1979 which established the Egyptian Wildlife Service as the first governmental authority concerned with the protection of wildlife in the country. The Presidential Decree of 5 March 1980, in expressing concern for environmental matters, established a mechanism for identifying and protecting threatened areas and species through cooperation between provincial governors, the Academy of Scientific Research and the Ministry of Agriculture. It was during this period that renowned marine biologist Eugenie Clark was impressing upon President Sadat the need to create a reserve at Ras Mohamed. Subsequently, Ministerial Decree No. 472 of 5 May 1982 ensured the prohibition of hunting of all birds and animals in a number of sites in the Sinai as well as banning fishing or harming molusucs and Reef. Eventually the promulgation of Law No. 102/83, which was passed by the People's Assembly on 20 July 1983, provided for the legal framework upon which the government could establish protected areas throughout the whole of Egypt. It is through this law, which came about with the memorable efforts of dedicated Egyptian Scientist and conservationists such as Professor Farkhanda Hassan, that Ras Mohamed was declared a protected site. It also created the Egyptian Environmental affairs Agency (EEAA) which now administers Ras Mohamed.

Further legislation was later enacted which included Law 101 of 1985 through which an additional tax on airplane tickets issued locally was levied in order to secure a higher source of funding to finance programs for environmental protection; and Ministerial Decree No. 1611 of 8 March 1989 granting police power to the EEAA in the natural protectorates. In 1994, Law 4 was passed and is considered the most comprehensive environmental legislation to date as it:

• Defines the scope and responsibilities of the EEAA
• Established the Environmental Protection Fund (EPF)
• Provides for the setting up of a system of environmental incentives
• Establishes environmental monitoring networks with their stations and working units.