33 USC § 411 - Penalty for wrongful deposit of refuse; use of or injury to harbor improvements, and obstruction of navigable waters generally

---
identifier: "/us/usc/t33/s411"
source: "usc"
legal_status: "official_prima_facie"
title: "33 USC § 411 - Penalty for wrongful deposit of refuse; use of or injury to harbor improvements, and obstruction of navigable waters generally"
title_number: 33
title_name: "NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS"
section_number: "411"
section_name: "Penalty for wrongful deposit of refuse; use of or injury to harbor improvements, and obstruction of navigable waters generally"
chapter_number: 9
chapter_name: "PROTECTION OF NAVIGABLE WATERS AND OF HARBOR AND RIVER IMPROVEMENTS GENERALLY"
subchapter_number: "I"
subchapter_name: "IN GENERAL"
positive_law: false
currency: "119-84"
last_updated: "2026-04-17"
format_version: "1.1.0"
generator: "[email protected]"
source_credit: "(Mar. 3, 1899, ch. 425, § 16, 30 Stat. 1153; Pub. L. 104–303, title II, § 218(a), Oct. 12, 1996, 110 Stat. 3696.)"
---


# § 411. Penalty for wrongful deposit of refuse; use of or injury to harbor improvements, and obstruction of navigable waters generally

Every person and every corporation that shall violate, or that shall knowingly aid, abet, authorize, or instigate a violation of the provisions of sections 407, 408, 409, 414, and 415 of this title shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and on conviction thereof shall be punished 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 by both such fine and imprisonment, in the discretion of the court, one-half of said fine to be paid to the person or persons giving information which shall lead to conviction.

---

**Source Credit**: (Mar. 3, 1899, ch. 425, § 16, 30 Stat. 1153; Pub. L. 104–303, title II, § 218(a), Oct. 12, 1996, 110 Stat. 3696.)

## Editorial Notes

### Codification

Section is from part of section 16 of act , popularly known as the “Rivers and Harbors Appropriation Act of 1899”. The balance of such section, relating to liability of masters, pilots, and so forth and of vessels engaged in violations, is classified to .

### Amendments

1996— substituted “407, 408, 409, 414, and 415” for “407, 408, and 409” and “of up to $25,000 per day” for “not exceeding twenty-five hundred dollars nor less than five hundred dollars”.