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I can't see it making all that much of a difference. I've seen a homemade wind generator spin out of control because there was no load on the alternator being used. Almost no resistance. Put 1 light on it and it comes down to a safe speed. You could probably test it before rigging it all up by observing engine load at idle with and without the belt.
I do like Frank's idea if it was worth splitting hairs, though. A parking brake lever and cable from a car would be perfect. A trampoline spring holds it loose and you pull up on the parking brake to tighten it up and activate the alternator. Locking it in place. Less weight. Less room for a failure later on. And you could find an even better use for the actuator.
You could even wire the switch in the parking brake to a relay that turns the alt back on when pulled up.
Alternatively, a spring loaded idler pulley would probably work best so not to wear out the pivot point on the alt. But use the cable to release tension when pulled up instead of create tension.
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