 The high-use designation means that a waterway carries more than 10 million tons per year, having a value of more than 12 million ton-miles per year.The Arkansas River is very shallow through Arkansas and Oklahoma, and was naturally incapable of supporting river traffic through most of the year.To allow for navigation, construction was started in 1963 on a system of channels and locks to connect the many reservoirs along the length of the Arkansas River.