🔍 Key Concepts

• MARPOL applicability to U.S. vessels (when and where it applies) • Difference between international waters, U.S. inland waters, and Great Lakes/western rivers • How MARPOL is implemented in U.S. law for U.S.-flag ocean‑going vessels

💭 Think About

• Ask yourself: Does MARPOL only matter once you leave U.S. waters, or is it tied to the vessel’s certification and type of voyage? • Which of these answer choices looks like it is trying to limit MARPOL’s reach to certain waters only? Should MARPOL protection be narrow or broad? • Think about how pollution rules are meant to work in practice: would it make sense for an ocean‑certified U.S. vessel to follow weaker rules when it comes into U.S. inland waters?

✅ Before You Answer

• Verify how MARPOL is applied through U.S. implementing regulations (e.g., 33 CFR parts related to pollution prevention). • Check whether U.S.-flag ocean‑going vessels must comply with MARPOL only abroad or also when in U.S. waters. • Confirm whether MARPOL protections stop at the territorial sea boundary or continue to apply when the same vessel enters inland waters.