The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency's Citizen's Board gave the go-ahead to Rochester Public Utilities on its plan to increase its coal consumption by 55 percent. The decision makes it the first time in ten years that the MPCA has allowed a power plant to INCREASE its burning of coal. Minnesota Public Radio's Rob Schmitz has this report. {Rochester Public Utilities, or RPU, will increase its coal consumption by up to 73,000 tons per year. It will produce steam to power new buildings at the Mayo Clinic. The nine-member MPCA Citizen's Board listened to five hours of what was mostly intense criticism of the plan before unanimously voting for it. The board did write an amendment to the permit requiring RPU to complete what the board called an 'economic analysis' and a 'feasibility study' on developing cleaner burning technology. RPU will have to present the study to the MPCA in November. Norm Erickson represents the Rochester Energy Futures Coalition, the main opposition to RPU's plans. He says he's satisfied by the amendment, but he's worried it won't be enough.