The solar field that was approved by Wareham Fire District voters at their annual meeting in 2011, went online last month and is anticipated to produce $50,000 a year in savings to the district.

The 4.5 acre field off of Upper Boundary Road contains 13 walls of solar panels that were constructed, and is owned and operated by the privately-owned, Mashpee-based company Renewable Energy Resources LLC.

"The district makes money off of the solar field in two ways," said Michael Martin, superintendent of the Wareham Fire District Water Department.

He said the solar panels reduce the district's annual electric costs (around $250,000) by $35,000. The power goes out to the grid and the district gets a reduction in what it pays for electricity. Also, since the land is owned by the district, the district brings in $15,000 a year by leasing it to Renewable Energy Resources. In order to get federal grants and tax credits the project must be privately owned and operated, according to Martin.

The contract with Renewable Energy Resources lasts for 20 years with the option for renewal. The 20-year savings for the district could amount to $1 million.

"Over time the panels become more efficient but use the same footprint," Martin said. "It becomes more profitable over time."

The field came online in the beginning of April and is expected to produce .65 megawatts of electricity per year. Martin said in the near future the power production will be streamed online and can be monitored by anyone at any point of the day in real time.

Tom Melehan said the interconnection with the utility company was the longest part of the process in getting the solar field up and running.

"It took about a year to get the interconnection agreement," Melehan said, noting that NStar had to do a studies on the effect of the power going into the system.

He also said a major problem are the Ospreys that build nests on the power lines adjacent to the facility. He said two weeks ago Ospreys knocked power out to the entire field because it was on one of the power line poles.

Aside from the Osprey, the solar field is going smoothly in its first month of operation, according to Martin. In fact, he said they are are already working on building a second field.