Two miles from the town of Wrightwood CA is the Mountain High Ski Resort. Above it is a ridgeline on which sits the Frost Peak Communication Site (FPCS). Winds from the Los Angeles basin to the south and the Mojave Desert to the north accelerate over this highpoint between the two zones. UL AWS Truewind Windnavigator predicts that annual wind speeds at 15m above ground level (agl) will average 19mph (8.2m/s).

In 2011, the Wrightwood non-profit “One Town at a Time” attempted to develop a traditional wind turbine project to make use of this ridgeline’s phenomenal resource, but the tall turbine’s impacts on aviation and views stopped it from securing a permit.

In the summer of 2019, One Town at a Time went back to the US Forest Service with a proposal to develop the project with Wind Harvest’s vertical axis wind turbines (VAWTs). The USFS was optimistic that a project with turbines no taller than 22m agl could secure permits.

The next step is to determine the best option for selling the project’s energy. Options include:

• Selling the energy via a “Net Metering” arrangement to the ski resort that uses more than 4 million kWh annually and has a peak capacity demand of >1600kW. • securing a PPA with a nearby Community Choice Aggregator like the city of Lancaster

• converting the ski resorts snow making reservoir on the ridgeline into a pump storage project and securing a PPA with Southern California Edison.

Wind Harvesters are ideal for this project. Their short stature won’t cause aviation or view impacts. They and the cranes used to install them can easily be transported up the narrow and winding mountain roads. They should be seen and avoided by birds. One MW of Wind Harvesters at this site should produce ~3,750 MWh annually and achieve a 45% capacity factor. The project could use the 3-phase line that runs under the ridgeline.