SOMERSET — Plans for a town wind turbine are on hold, stalled by a lawsuit that is blocking the erection of a small test tower to see if a turbine might be practical.

But now the Board of Selectmen has begun talking about getting into solar power as a way to cut into Somerset’s growing energy bill.

Selectman Patrick O’Neil has brought up the issue at the last two meetings, raising the possibility of having panels at the Highway Department building at 1263 Brayton Point Rd., which is in need of a new roof anyway.

A study by Munro Electric of Raynham, Mass., has suggested that the cost of a 25-kilowatt system there would be just under $179,000, and the savings, over its 25-year life span, would be $378,951. The system could be designed and installed within 35 days.

In essence, utility bills at the facility would be reduced by half.

“Not only are the numbers good, but it’s good for the environment,” said O’Neil. “I think eventually it will be good for the taxpayers’ pocketbooks.”

“If we can get the money back in four years, even eight years, that’s a good thing,” said Selectman Lorne Lawless.

Lawless has organized a group that has spent the last few months going through town buildings to see what kinds of repairs and maintenance they need.

He said once that work is completed, the town can pinpoint the best locations for going solar. “We have to come down to where the best sites are.”

Lawless said he likes the idea of solar because “the payout is good now. Solar cells are a lot better than what they used to be.”

Town Meeting voters would ultimately have to decide whether to approve a solar project.

“We need to show [them] a payout, a good return on the investment,” Lawless said.

O’Neil said he was focusing on going solar at the Highway Department because “there’s been a lot of talk that they’ll need a new roof in the near future. … If you just put on a roof, it never pays you back.”

But he said he supports weighing the idea for any town building. “Maybe the Highway Department is not the best. I’m open to the possibilities.”

The Munro study says the panels would prevent the release of 541 tons of carbon dioxide, the chief greenhouse gas responsible for global warming.

To get a comparable environmental benefit over 25 years, the town would have to plant 21,656 trees or reduce the number of miles driven by the town’s SUVs by 689,682, according to the analysis.

Attempts to explore the possibility of tapping wind power in town have been stymied by four residents who have gone to court to challenge the Zoning Board of Appeal’s approval of a 131-foot-high, 6-inch-wide meteorological pole that would measure wind speeds for at least six months.

The site is the old Cordeiro Family Farm property at 372 Whetstone Hill Rd. It was chosen for testing because a turbine there could produce enough electricity for North Elementary School and the water treatment plant, the second biggest municipal consumer of electricity.

The appeal has been filed by Fairway Drive residents Joseph and Nancy Fingliss, and Rodney and Lisa Stafford.

gemery@projo.com