Kobaldeck

The Tauernwindpark stands on the Schönberg ridge in the Niedere Tauern range of the Austrian Alps. It occupies a windswept crest between the hamlets of Kobaldeck and Pichlerstein, 1 900 metres above sea level. Eleven tall towers were first erected here in 2002, and two more followed two years later. The site’s steady gales, averaging seven metres per second, allow the turbines to generate enough electricity each year for about thirteen thousand homes. Every year the park saves roughly fifteen thousand tonnes of heating oil and keeps thirty-five thousand tonnes of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere. The original eleven machines have since been replaced by nine larger units, raising the park’s output by half while reducing the number of towers. Visitors can walk the ridge and see the new turbines up close, their 66-metre blades sweeping above the alpine meadows. In summer a rough forest track from Oberzeiring brings walkers to the site. In winter the same ridge is reached by ski-lift from the Lachtal ski area or by the company’s special vehicles.