Joshua “Josh” Emerson, of Checotah, was recently appointed to serve as a member of the Emergency Drought Commission for a term serving at the pleasure of the President Pro Tempore, Greg Treat, of the Oklahoma Senate.

Emerson will serve as a member who resides east of Interstate 35.

The Emergency Drought Commission voted to reinstate Pond Clean Out Cost-Share participants whose applications were canceled due to not having their projects completed by the July 15 deadline. The Commission has tasked the Oklahoma Conservation Commission to gather how many applicants will be reinstated, as well as any questions or concerns from local conservation districts. This information will then be used to provide more guidance to districts to mitigate obstacles for applicants and to set more reasonable deadlines for the program.

According to the Oklahoma Conservation Commission, the addition of Emerson from McIntosh County and Pete Nichols from Washita County, now makes the Commission have a total of five members. Their newest appointments come at a time when the Commission is actively considering ways to streamline its processes. The feedback received from the state’s producers at a recent meeting highlighting the need for a more simplified application process for drought funds.

Emerson has been a full-time, self-employed rancher since 1998, op-erating Emerson Ranch LLC. Emerson, along with his wife, Kim, operates a 350-head cow herd near Checotah. The herd consists mostly of Angus X and Sim Angus genetics. Emerson extensively uses artificial insemination and embryo transfer to produce replacement heifers and bulls for his herd. He has a 75-cow herd of registered cows used to produce high quality show heifers and herd sire prospects.

Emerson also produces hay for his own use and sells hay to a number of local customers. He routinely improves his pasture and hay land through rotational grazing and numerous cover crop species.

Emerson is the Mc-Intosh County Farm Bureau President and the McIntosh County Cattlemen’s Association President and was awarded the Muskogee Creek Nation Conservation Champion for Agriculture for 2022-2023. He is also a member of the Oklahoma Farm Bureau where he is a past Chairman of the OKFB Young Farmers and Ranchers Committee.

Emerson is a lifetime member of Oklahoma Cattlemen’s Association. He has been married to his wife for 16 years and enjoys spending time on the ranch with their two children, 8-year-old Julie and 5-year-old Jax.