A solar array panel at the Aquinnah landfill is on track to be fully operational this spring, after the town and energy cooperative Vineyard Power signed a final lease and power purchase agreement last week.

Voters approved the array at a special town meeting in December, and selectmen, town counsel and Vineyard Power have been hammering out the final details of the agreement since then. Removal fees for the panels, the length of the lease and concerns about Vineyard Power going bankrupt have now been resolved, the selectmen said.

Vineyard Power will install the 60,000-kilowatt system at the capped landfill at no cost to the town. The project is estimated to cost $330,000 to install. The energy cooperative will then lease the land for $390 a year for 10 years, money which will be paid to the town at the end of the 10 years.

The agreement calls for the 10-year lease to have three five-year options to extend the lease, but that extension must be mutually agreed upon either by another town meeting approval or by the selectmen.

The town is also no longer required to purchase 100 per cent of the energy produced by the array but must buy a minimum of 50,000 kilowatt hours. Vineyard Power can then sell the remaining energy to another entity.

Vineyard Power is also required to post a surety bond upfront in the event they go out of business.

This will be Vineyard Power’s first solar array on the Island. It is in the permitting process for a larger scale array at Cronig’s Market in Vineyard Haven.

Town counsel Ronald H. Rappaport said the town was “comfortable with the document” and gave high compliments to town administrator Adam Wilson for his work on the project.

“This is the first time I’ve really seen Adam in action, and this is heavy going, going through these power purchase agreements. Adam was really on top of every issue, and I was very impressed,” he said. “He did a very good job on behalf of the town.”

Selectmen also discussed a management plan for a new easement that provides walking and fishing access to Squibnocket Pond. The town conservation commission has approved a management plan developed by the town, an engineer and the Sheriff’s Meadow Foundation, and brush will now be cleared to accommodate the trail down to the pond’s edge. The surrounding area is private property.

The easement is restricted to Aquinnah residents. Voters approved spending $5,000 to maintain the access at the annual town meeting last May.