No. 3 Emmerson Family

1,860,000 acres
Sierra Pacific Industries (SPI) was founded in 1949 by Curly Emmerson and his son Red. The company has been owned and operated by the family ever since. Currently, SPI is spearheading a significant conservation project at Lake Tahoe near the Northstar ski area. The company is going to forgo development rights on nearly 6,400 acres of land. Instead, it plans to convert those 10 square miles into open space and contribute them to a 50,000-acre block of undeveloped land between Lake Tahoe and Truckee. The project offers a tremendous opportunity to preserve a vast amount of open space and is now in the public review stage.