Altamont Pass Wind Farm
Encyclopedia
Altamont Pass
Altamont Pass, formerly Livermore Pass, is a mountain pass in the Diablo Range between Livermore in the Livermore Valley and Tracy in the San Joaquin Valley in Northern California...
of the Diablo Range
Diablo Range
The Diablo Range is a mountain range in the California Coast Ranges subdivision of the Pacific Coast Ranges. It is located in the eastern San Francisco Bay area south to the Salinas Valley area of northern California, the United States.-Geography:...
in Central California
Central California
Central California, sometimes referenced as Mid-State, is an area of California south of the San Francisco Bay Area and north of Southern California...
. It is one of the earliest wind farms in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The wind farm
Wind farm
A wind farm is a group of wind turbines in the same location used to produce electric power. A large wind farm may consist of several hundred individual wind turbines, and cover an extended area of hundreds of square miles, but the land between the turbines may be used for agricultural or other...
is composed of 4930 relatively small wind turbine
Wind turbine
A wind turbine is a device that converts kinetic energy from the wind into mechanical energy. If the mechanical energy is used to produce electricity, the device may be called a wind generator or wind charger. If the mechanical energy is used to drive machinery, such as for grinding grain or...
s 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 1970s energy crisis
1970s energy crisis
The 1970s energy crisis was a period in which the major industrial countries of the world, particularly the United States, faced substantial shortages, both perceived and real, of petroleum...
in response to favorable tax policies for investors.
Repowering
The small turbines used at Altamont are dangerous to various raptorBird of prey
Birds of prey are birds that hunt for food primarily on the wing, using their keen senses, especially vision. They are defined as birds that primarily hunt vertebrates, including other birds. Their talons and beaks tend to be relatively large, powerful and adapted for tearing and/or piercing flesh....
s that hunt California Ground Squirrel
California Ground Squirrel
The California ground squirrel , is a common and easily observed ground squirrel of the western United States and the Baja California peninsula; it is common in Oregon and California and its range has relatively recently extended into Washington and northwestern Nevada...
s in the area. 1300 raptors are killed annually, among them 70 golden eagle
Golden Eagle
The Golden Eagle is one of the best known birds of prey in the Northern Hemisphere. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. Once widespread across the Holarctic, it has disappeared from many of the more heavily populated areas...
s, which are federally protected; in total, 4700 birds are killed annually.
Considered largely obsolete, these numerous small turbines are being gradually replaced with much larger and more cost-effective units. The larger units turn more slowly and, being elevated higher, are claimed to be less hazardous to the local wildlife. This claim is supported by a report done for the Bonneville Power Administration
Bonneville Power Administration
The Bonneville Power Administration is an American federal agency based in the Pacific Northwest. BPA was created by an act of Congress in 1937 to market electric power from the Bonneville Dam located on the Columbia River and to construct facilities necessary to transmit that power...
.
As of 2010, a settlement has been reached between the Audubon Society, Californians for Renewable Energy and NextEra Energy Resources (who operate some 5,000 turbines in the area). Nearly half of the smaller turbines will be replaced by newer, more bird-friendly models. The project is expected to be complete by 2015 and includes $2.5 million for raptor habitat restoration.
See also
- Wind power in CaliforniaWind power in CaliforniaWind power in California has been an area of considerable activity for many years. California was the first U.S. state where large wind farms were developed, beginning in the early 1980s. By 1995, California produced 30 percent of the entire world's wind-generated electricity...
- Tehachapi Pass Wind FarmTehachapi Pass Wind FarmWind development in the Tehachapi Pass began in the early 1980s. The area hosts a multitude of wind farms, comprising one of California's largest wind resource areas. The pass is undergoing much repowering activity...
- San Gorgonio Pass Wind FarmSan Gorgonio Pass Wind FarmThe San Gorgonio Pass Wind Farm is a wind farm located on the eastern slope of the San Gorgonio Pass in Riverside County, just east of White Water, California, United States. Developed beginning in the 1980s, it is one of three major wind farms in California, along with those at Altamont and the...
- Wind power in the United StatesWind power in the United StatesAs of the third quarter of 2011, the cumulative installed capacity of wind power in the United States was 43,461 megawatts , making it second in the world, behind China. In 2010 wind power accounted for 2.3% of the electricity generated in the United States...
- Altamont (disambiguation)