Town Meeting voters on Thursday gave the Selectmen the green light to pursue green energy at Wareham's wastewater treatment plant.

Water Pollution Control Facility Director Guy Campinha is hoping that 30 acres of land that currently features an unused sludge landfill at the facility can instead be used for a solar field.

Voters' approval gives the Selectmen the ability to lease that land to a developer who would build the solar field. The energy generated would then be purchased by the town at a lower rate than the town is currently paying, and will help power the Water Pollution Control Facility.

The savings would then be passed on to sewer users, who foot the bill for the operation of the plant through annual sewer fees.

"We have to buy our electricity no matter what," Campinha noted, and explained that the town would likely be able to purchase power at a rate of 10 cents or less per kilowatt hour, as opposed to the current rate of 14 cents per kilowatt hour, which would save the plant approximately $10,000 per month for the first year.

It costs approximately $485,000 per year to power the Water Pollution Control Facility and the sewer pump stations throughout town.

Campinha said the town would look to lease the land for approximately 20 years, though all aspects of the lease and the project will have to be negotiated with a developer.

In other business, voters opted not to allocate up to $10,000 to hire an arborist to examine trees at the town's cemeteries. Opponents cited the town's strapped budget and the fact that the Selectmen had not had an opportunity to discuss the proposal before it went to the Town Meeting warrant.

Voters did opt to earmark approximately $120,000 of additional state "Chapter 70" school aid for the School Department.

Fall Town Meeting voters reconvened to finish the town's business on Thursday, after Hurricane Sandy delayed the meeting on Monday.