Ohio Governor Mike DeWine named 2024 the 鈥淵ear of Ohio State Parks鈥� to mark the 75th anniversary of the state鈥檚 park system.
This year is also the 75th anniversary of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, the state agency that oversees parks and wildlife, as well as resources like minerals, oil and gas.
The state legislature in 1949.
ODNR Chief of Communications Andy Chow said that before that, the state had hundreds of different stewardship and conservation policies.
鈥淵et it was just kind of all put together in sort of a kaleidoscope of policies,鈥� Chow said. 鈥淭he real goal of 1949 with the ODNR was to create one, unified voice for conservation policies, for conservation laws.鈥�
The department started with seven divisions, including the divisions of parks and watercraft, forestry, water, wildlife and geological survey, which all still exist today.
鈥淪o, there are so many different things that were top priorities 75 years ago that are still top priorities today at ODNR,鈥� Chow said.
The other five departments that make up ODNR today are the departments of coastal management, engineering, mineral resource management, natural areas and preservation, and oil and gas resources management.
ODNR owns and manages more than 800,000 acres of land, including 24 state forests, almost 150 nature preserves and 150 wildlife areas. ODNR also manages 7,000 miles of streams, more than 480 miles of the Ohio River and 2.25 million acres of Lake Erie. It licenses all hunting, fishing and watercraft in the state.
75 years and 75 parks
But ODNR is perhaps best known as the steward of Ohio鈥檚 state parks. Several state parks were created in 1949 at the same time as ODNR, Chow said. One of the first parks was Buckeye Lake State Park in Fairfield, Licking and Perry counties.
ODNR now oversees and will soon open its 76th. Great Council State Park will be in Xenia and could open as early as this spring.
Chow said the measure of success for a park varies. Some attract large numbers of people every weekend. Others provide unique experiences.
And Ohio鈥檚 diverse landscape provides plenty of opportunity: from the rolling hills of Appalachia to the streams and rivers and up to Lake Erie. Chow pointed to Nelson-Kennedy Ledges State Park in Portage County in northeast Ohio and Salt Fork Lake in Guernsey County as examples of parks with very different geography.
鈥淒epending on what part of the state you鈥檙e in, you can enjoy something different at our state parks, and I think that鈥檚 a uniqueness that Ohio can provide to people,鈥� Chow said.
"There are so many different things that were top priorities 75 years ago that are still top priorities today at ODNR."- ODNR Chief of Communications Andy Chow
ODNR鈥檚 next mission
Among ODNR鈥檚 more recent responsibilities is the restoration of wetlands around Ohio. DeWine launched the H2Ohio initiative in 2019 with an aim to improve water quality around the state and especially in the Lake Erie basin.
Since then, ODNR has finished or is in the process of restoring 170 wetlands, Chow said.
鈥淭hey sort of soak up the runoff like a sponge to make sure that nutrients and sediment don鈥檛 go directly into our waterways,鈥� Chow said of the wetlands. 鈥淭hey go a long way in protecting our water and improving our water quality, but they also restore habitat for different wildlife.鈥�
And ODNR is celebrating its 75th birthday all year. The Division of Geological Survey at four of ODNR鈥檚 original state parks. The hikes will include information about Ohio鈥檚 geological history and the state鈥檚 flora and fauna.
The first hike is at 1 p.m. on May 18 at Nelson-Kennedy Ledges State Park. On June 22, ODNR naturalists and geologists will lead a 1 p.m. hike at Kiser Lake State Park in Champaign County.
In the fall, ODNR will host hikes at Shawnee State Park and Hueston Woods State Park.
