What US Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 (33 USC ch 9): Navigable Waters, Corps Permits and the Refuse Act requires
The Rivers and Harbors Appropriation Act of 1899, codified at 33 U.S.C. Chapter 9 (sections 401 et seq.), is the foundational US statute protecting the navigable capacity of the waters of the United States and is administered by the US Army Corps of Engineers. Section 401 requires the consent of Congress and the approval of plans by the Chief of Engineers and the Secretary of the Army before constructing any bridge, dam, dike or causeway over or in navigable waters. Section 403 (the historic Section 10) provides that the creation of any obstruction not affirmatively authorized by Congress to the navigable capacity of any of the waters of the United States is prohibited, and that it is unlawful to build any wharf, pier, breakwater, bulkhead, jetty or other structure, or to excavate or fill or in any manner alter the course, location, condition or capacity of any navigable water, except on plans recommended by the Chief of Engineers and authorized by the Secretary of the Army. Section 406 sets the penalty for violating section 403 and authorizes the removal of unauthorized structures. Section 407 (the historic Section 13, popularly known as the Refuse Act) makes it unlawful to throw, discharge or deposit any refuse matter of any kind (other than that flowing from streets and sewers in a liquid state) into any navigable water of the United States, or onto its banks where it may be washed into such water, except under a permit. Section 411 sets the penalty for the wrongful deposit of refuse and related offenses: a violation is punishable by a fine of up to $25,000 per day, or by imprisonment (in the case of a natural person) for not less than thirty days nor more than one year, or both. Section 409 addresses obstruction by, and the duty to remove, sunken vessels, and section 413 provides for enforcement. Penalty figures are subject to inflation adjustment by regulation.
Pillar: Water & Environmental Resources · Authority: US Congress / US Army Corps of Engineers · Version: 1.0.0 · Last updated:
Primary source: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2022-title33/html/USCODE-2022-title33-chap9.htm
SHA-256 integrity: 82aca194024588ca2c25c29845a7488db7b9472eeb00fd64e7b12e94c15c58ab
Primary Citations — 8 traced to source
- Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899, 33 U.S.C. 401 - bridges, dams, dikes and causeways over navigable waters.
- Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899, 33 U.S.C. 403 - obstruction of navigable waters; structures and alterations requiring Army Corps authorization (Section 10).
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