District of Columbia Code Division IV. Criminal Law and Procedure and Prisoners. § 22-4402. Throwing or depositing matter in Potomac River.

(a) It shall be unlawful for any owner or occupant of any wharf or dock, any master or captain of any vessel, or any person or persons to cast, throw, drop, or deposit any stone, gravel, sand, ballast, dirt, oyster shells, or ashes in the water in any part of the Potomac River or its tributaries in the District of Columbia, or on the shores of said river below highwater mark, unless for the purpose of making a wharf, after permission has been obtained from the Mayor of the District of Columbia for that purpose, which wharf shall be sufficiently inclosed and secured so as to prevent injury to navigation.

(b) It shall be unlawful for any owner or occupant of any wharf or dock, any captain or master of any vessel, or any other person or persons to cast, throw, deposit, or drop in any dock or in the waters of the Potomac River or its tributaries in the District of Columbia any dead fish, fish offal, dead animals of any kind, condemned oysters in the shell, watermelons, cantaloupes, vegetables, fruits, shavings, hay, straw, or filth of any kind whatsoever.

(c) Nothing in this section contained shall be construed to interfere with the work of improvement in or along the said river and harbor under the supervision of the United States government.

(d) Any person or persons violating any of the provisions of this section shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and on conviction shall be punished by a fine not more than the amount set forth in § 22-3571.01, or by imprisonment not exceeding 6 months, or both, in the discretion of the court.