JEROME -- Representatives of a proposed coal-fired power plant company got the OK on Monday night to build and operate a meteorological tower.

But, the approval from the Jerome County Planning and Zoning Commission did not come without stipulations and much debate.

Several commissioners acknowledged that decisions on Sempra Generation's proposed 600-megawatt coal-fired power plant loom on the horizon but said they could act only on the application at hand.

"I would like to have more information," said Commissioner Sam Harris.

However, "if this was a TV station trying to put in a tower for the weather, we wouldn't have any problems with it," he said.

The commissioners approved the company's request for a weather station by a vote of 6-1, with Commissioner Doug Suter casting the lone dissenting vote.

"I feel I would like to have more information on what is coming later," Suter said.

Suter noted that he was concerned about commissioners having to sidestep problems later on if they made an uninformed decision.

While Commissioner Patricia Heath agreed that future decisions will require more education on the part of the commission, she said that Sempra has met the requirements for its weather station.

Sempra will collect information about precipitation, wind speed and temperature. The company also will monitor the level of existing air pollutants such as sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide, particulate matter and ozone -- pollutants linked to respiratory illness and environmental damage. All data will be given to the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality to be used when Sempra applies for its state air quality permit.

At the public hearing on Sempra's special-use permit in May, several residents asked the commission to require Sempra to monitor other pollutants such as mercury and ammonia. Sempra's attorney said that DEQ determines which pollutants should be examined.

At Monday's meeting, Commissioner Jack Nelsen re-emphasized that point.

"I don't think it's our duty as a commission to determine what they should study," Nelsen said.

Nelsen, however, did think the commission had a right to require that an independent agent verify the data collected at the meteorological station, which will be located at the site of the proposed power plant northeast of the city of Jerome. Nelsen felt the commission had a duty to assure residents that the information gathered is legitimate.

Therefore, the commissioners voted to require Sempra to pay for an independent agent. Additionally, the company will need to comply with requirements for lighting set forth by the Airport Board.

San Diego-based Sempra, working under the subsidiary of Idaho Valley LLC, would monitor conditions for one year and would remove the weather station at the end of 18 months.

Times-News reporter Michelle Dunlop can be reached at 735-3237 or by e-mail at mdunlop@magicvalley.com.