Waccasassa Bay Preserve State Park Management Plan

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Waccasassa Bay Preserve State Park Management Plan WACCASASSA BAY PRESERVE STATE PARK UNIT MANAGEMENT PLAN APPROVED STATE OF FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION Division of Recreation and Parks June 3, 2005 Department of Environmental Protection Marjory Stoneman Douglas Building Jeb Bush 3900 Commonwealth Boulevard, MS 140 Colleen Castille Governor Tallahassee, Florida 32399-3000 Secretary Phone: (850) 245-2784 Fax: (850) 245-2786 June 6, 2005 Ms. BryAnne White Office of Park Planning Division of Recreation and Parks 3900 Commonwealth Blvd.; M.S. 525 Tallahassee, Florida 32399 Re: Waccasassa Bay Preserve State Park Lease #2599 Dear Ms. White: On June 3, 2005, the Acquisition and Restoration Council recommended approval of the Waccasassa Bay Preserve State Park management plan. Therefore, the Office of Environmental Services, acting as agent for the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund, approved the management plan for the Waccasassa Bay Preserve State Park. Pursuant to Sections 253.034 and 259.032, Florida Statutes, and Chapter 18-2, Florida Administrative Code this plan’s ten-year update will be due on June 3, 2015. Approval of this land management plan does not waive the authority or jurisdiction of any governmental entity that may have an interest in this project. Implementation of any upland activities proposed by this management plan may require a permit or other authorization from federal and state agencies having regulatory jurisdiction over those particular activities. Pursuant to the conditions of your lease, please forward copies of all permits to this office upon issuance. Sincerely, Paula L. Allen Office of Environmental Services Division of State Lands Department of Environmental Protection "More Protection, Less Process” Printed on recycled paper. TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION.................................................................................................................. 1 PURPOSE AND SCOPE OF PLAN .................................................................................... 1 MANAGEMENT PROGRAM OVERVIEW...................................................................... 3 Management Authority And Responsibility.......................................................................... 3 Park Goals And Objectives ................................................................................................... 4 Management Coordination.................................................................................................... 7 Public Participation............................................................................................................... 8 Other Designations................................................................................................................ 8 RESOURCE MANAGEMENT COMPONENT INTRODUCTION.................................................................................................................. 9 RESOURCE DESCRIPTION AND ASSESSMENT ......................................................... 9 Natural Resources.................................................................................................................. 9 Cultural Resources............................................................................................................... 20 RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PROGRAM.................................................................... 21 Special Management Considerations .................................................................................. 21 Management Needs And Problems ..................................................................................... 22 Management Objectives...................................................................................................... 24 Management Measures For Natural Resources................................................................... 27 Management Measures For Cultural Resources.................................................................. 30 Research Needs................................................................................................................... 30 Resource Management Schedule......................................................................................... 31 Land Management Review.................................................................................................. 31 i LAND USE COMPONENT INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................ 33 EXTERNAL CONDITIONS .............................................................................................. 33 Existing Use Of Adjacent Lands ......................................................................................... 33 Planned Use Of Adjacent Lands.......................................................................................... 34 PROPERTY ANALYSIS .................................................................................................... 34 Recreation Resource Elements............................................................................................ 34 Assessment Of Use.............................................................................................................. 36 CONCEPTUAL LAND USE PLAN .................................................................................. 38 Potential Uses And Proposed Facilities............................................................................... 40 Facilities Development........................................................................................................ 40 Existing Use And Optimum Carrying Capacity.................................................................. 40 Optimum Boundary............................................................................................................. 41 TABLE TABLE 1 - Existing Use And Optimum Carrying Capacity ................................................ 41 LIST OF ADDENDA ADDENDUM 1 Acquisition History and Advisory Group Report...................................................... A 1 - 1 ADDENDUM 2 References Cited........................................................................................................ A 2 - 1 ADDENDUM 3 Soil Descriptions ....................................................................................................... A 3 - 1 ii ADDENDUM 4 Plant And Animal List............................................................................................... A 4 - 1 ADDENDUM 5 Designated Species List............................................................................................. A 5 - 1 ADDENDUM 6 Florida Master Site File List of Cultural Sites........................................................... A 6 - 1 ADDENDUM 7 Timber Management Analysis .................................................................................. A 7 - 1 ADDENDUM 8 Priority Schedule and Cost Estimates........................................................................ A 8 - 1 MAPS Vicinity Map ............................................................................................................................ 2 Soils Map ............................................................................................................................... 11 Natural Communities Map..................................................................................................... 15 Base Map ............................................................................................................................... 37 Conceptual Land Use Plan..................................................................................................... 39 Optimum Boundary Map ....................................................................................................... 42 iii INTRODUCTION Waccasassa Bay Preserve State Park is located in Levy County (see Vicinity Map) west of U.S. Highway 19 and south of State Road 24. Currently, there is limited public access to the park via land. Access to the park is primarily via water. The park contains 34,064 acres. For this plan, park acreage has been calculated based on the composition of natural communities, in addition to ruderal and developed areas. The vicinity map also reflects significant land and water resources existing near the park. Waccasassa Bay Preserve State Park is located at the seaward fringe of Gulf Hammock, a once vast hardwood forest that originally covered almost 100,000 acres in the region between the Suwannee and Withlacoochee Rivers. Gulf Hammock consists mainly of wet lowlands whose characteristic natural community is hydric hammock. Waccasassa Bay Preserve State Park harbors some of the last remnants of intact Gulf Hammock; outside the preserve much of what was formerly hydric hammock is now pine plantation. Bordering the hydric hammock along the low energy coast of the Gulf of Mexico are vast expanses of tidal marsh. The tidal marsh is dissected by numerous tidal creeks and is dotted with isolated islands of hydric hammock inhabited by semi-tropical and temperate plant species. Waccasassa Bay Preserve State Park still offers sweeping vistas of natural landscapes uninterrupted by buildings, power lines and bridges. The preserve is home to numerous rare, threatened or endangered plant and animal species and commercially important marine species. The plentiful and varied cultural resources of the preserve range from prehistoric burial mounds and trash heaps to historic sites of the industries that formerly thrived in the area.
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