Have you ever heard of the Altamont Pass Wind Farm? We went for a drive the other day and I took a few pictures of it. The road we were on called Patterson Pass was SO BUSY! It was just before commute time and those who live in the Bay Area know how bad the commute is around there. There were very few places to stop especially at that time, so I’d like to go back on a weekend at sunset to see if it’s less busy.
Altamont Pass Brief Description:
It is located in the Altamont Pass of the Diablo Range in Central California, and it’s one of the earliest wind farms in the United States. The first wind turbines were placed on the Altamont by Fayette Manufacturing Corporation on land owned by cattle rancher Joe Jess. The wind farm is composed of 4930 relatively small wind turbines of various types, making it at one time the largest farm in the world in terms of capacity. Altamont Pass is still the largest concentration of wind turbines in the world, with a capacity of 576 megawatts (MW), producing about 125 MW on average and 1.1 terawatt-hours (TWh) yearly. They were installed after the 1970’s energy crisis in response to favorable tax policies for investors.
You can find out more about the Altamont Pass Wind Farm by clicking on the hyperlink.
Altamont Wind Farm
Please check Leanne Cole’s blog out later today for the entire gallery.
Laura Macky Photography 