Heavener Runestone State Park Resource Management Plan 2010 Leflore County, Oklahoma Lowell Caneday, Ph.D. With Kaowen (Grace) Chang, Ph.D., Debra Jordan, Re.D., Tyler Tapps, Ph.D., Kevin Fink, Michael J. Bradley, and Diane S. Hassell This page intentionally left blank. 2 Acknowledgements The authors acknowledge the assistance of numerous individuals in the preparation of this Resource Management Plan. On behalf of the Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department’s Division of State Parks, staff members were extremely helpful in providing access to information and in sharing of their time. The essential staff providing assistance for the development of the RMP included Rodger Cunningham, Mandee Hafer, and Vicki Hurst, all associated with Lake Wister State Park and Heavener Runestone State Park, and Bryce Todd, the regional manager for the southeast region of Oklahoma State Parks. Assistance was also provided by Hardy Watkins, Kris Marek, and Doug Hawthorne – all from the Oklahoma City office of the Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department. It is the purpose of the Resource Management Plan to be a living document to assist with decisions related to the resources within the park and the management of those resources. The authors’ desire is to assist decision-makers in providing high quality outdoor recreation experiences and resources for current visitors, while protecting the experiences and the resources for future generations. Lowell Caneday, Ph.D., Professor Leisure Studies Oklahoma State University Stillwater, OK 74078 3 Abbreviations and Acronyms ADAAG ................................................. Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines BCE ............................................................................................................ Before the Common Era CCC...................................................................................................... Civilian Conservation Corps CDC ...................................................................................................... Centers for Disease Control CE ................................................................................................................................ Common Era CLEET ........................................................ Council on Law Enforcement Education and Training GIS ............................................................................................... Geographic Information Systems GPS ......................................................................................................... Global Positioning System EPA ............................................................................................. Environmental Protection Agency MCL .................................................................................................. Maximum Contaminate Level NAAQS ............................................................................. National Ambient Air Quality Standards NAWQA ................................................................... National Water Quality Assessment Program NEPA ........................................................................................ National Environmental Policy Act NPRM ........................................................................................... Notice of Proposed Rule Making OSU.................................................................................... Oklahoma State University – Stillwater OTRD .................................................................... Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department OWRB........................................................................................ Oklahoma Water Resources Board PBCR ............................................................................................. Primary body contact recreation pH ........................................................................................................... potential for hydrogen ions ppm ......................................................................................................................... parts per million R .............................................................................................................................................. Range RMP ...................................................................................................... Resource Management Plan SCORP ............................................................ Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan SCBR ......................................................................................... Secondary body contact recreation T .........................................................................................................................................Township TNC............................................................................................................The Nature Conservancy USFWS .............................................................................. United States Fish and Wildlife Service USGS ............................................................................................ United States Geological Survey WBDO .............................................................................................. Waterborne Disease Outbreak 4 Table of Contents Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................................... 3 Abbreviations and Acronyms ......................................................................................................... 4 Table of Contents ............................................................................................................................ 5 List of Tables .................................................................................................................................. 8 List of Figures ................................................................................................................................. 9 Mission Statement of the Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department ................................. 10 Vision Statement ........................................................................................................................... 10 OTRD Values................................................................................................................................ 10 Chapter 1 – Introduction ............................................................................................................... 11 Resource Management Plan: Purpose and Process ................................................................... 11 Planning Process ................................................................................................................... 11 Agencies Involved ................................................................................................................ 12 Chapter 2 – Project Description .................................................................................................... 15 About the Park .......................................................................................................................... 15 Purpose and Significance of Heavener Runestone State Park .............................................. 15 Geographic Location of Heavener Runestone State Park ..................................................... 17 Community and Regional Context ........................................................................................... 18 Brief History of Leflore County ........................................................................................... 18 Demographic and Socioeconomic Conditions and Impact ................................................... 22 Competing and Complementary Recreational Opportunities ............................................... 26 Park History .......................................................................................................................... 29 Physical Setting ..................................................................................................................... 30 Natural Resources in the Park ................................................................................................... 31 Climate and Air Quality ........................................................................................................ 31 Topography ........................................................................................................................... 32 Geology ................................................................................................................................. 33 Soil ........................................................................................................................................ 33 Hydrology ............................................................................................................................. 34 Vegetative Cover .................................................................................................................. 34 Wildlife ................................................................................................................................. 35 5 Accessibility .............................................................................................................................. 37 Cultural Resources in the Park .................................................................................................