Wind Farm Proposed for Taconic Trail Highpoint in Mass

Some Massachusetts entrepreneurs want to harness the wind blowing through a pass on the Taconic Ridge and turn it into electricity.
The proposed wind farm site, owned by Williams College, is in the town of Berlin near the Taconic Crest Trail between Berlin Mountain and Mount Raimer. The Williamstown, Mass., college ran a ski area there that was abandoned in the early 1980s. Now, only hikers, cross-country skiers and college students doing meteorological field studies visit the windy ridge.
A group called the Berlin Wind Project recognized that the most valuable part of the area might not be the slopes, the spectacular views or the nearly 400 acres of land the college owns there.

The 35-mile long Taconic Crest Trail reaches its highest elevation at Berlin Mountain, and the ridgeline offers panoramic views of the Catskills, Adirondacks and other mountains in the surrounding states. The windmills would likely be visible for many miles.
Hiza said the wind farm could produce enough energy to provide power for 4,000 average American homes, or for about two-thirds of the residents of Williamstown.

http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=85391&category=REGION&BCCode=HOME&newsdate=12/21/2002

Taconic Crest Trail on Web:
http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=taconic+crest+trail