James Hagengruber

James Hagengruber is reporter for The Spokesman-Review in the Idaho department. He covers stories in Coeur d'Alene and North Idaho on regional environmental and natural resources.

Contact James

Email: jamesh@spokesman.com
Phone: 208-765-7126

Recent stories by James

U.S. envoy talks about future for Iraq and himself

April 8, 2008 in City on Page A1 BAGHDAD – On a bright Sunday morning in March, Ambassador Ryan Crocker stepped out of a meeting with top embassy staff, adjusted his silk tie and greeted two visitors from …
Canfield trails get test run

October 28, 2007 in Idaho on Page B1 A few decades back, Bruce Shadduck could climb the foothills of Canfield Mountain and stare out across a scattering of small farms, patches of forest and the huge green carpet …
Lakebed will be ready just in time for spawning

October 27, 2007 in Idaho on Page A1 BAYVIEW, Idaho – Just in the nick of time, Lake Pend Oreille’s kokanee salmon should again have a clean bed of gravel for fall egg-laying. The gravel beds and tens …
Hunting fatality probed

October 25, 2007 in Idaho on Page B1 Officials have not yet decided whether to pursue criminal charges in connection with the late-afternoon shooting death Tuesday of a hunter near Bayview, according to a statement issued by Kootenai …
County won”t interfere with adjudication process

October 24, 2007 in Idaho on Page A1 Despite pressure from leaders of surrounding counties, Kootenai County commissioners rejected a proposal Tuesday that could have slowed or derailed the adjudication of water rights in North Idaho. “It’s important …
Easy food deadly for grizzlies

October 21, 2007 in Idaho on Page A1 A picture might be worth a thousand words, but is it worth the life of one of the nation’s rarest mammals? That’s the question wildlife experts are asking after a …
Project restores safe wetlands

October 13, 2007 in Idaho on Page A1 CATALDO, Idaho – On Monday, the swans were swimming and feeding in the marsh. A couple of days later, they were sluggish and barely moving. By Friday, the swans were …
Marines proud of airport’s name

October 6, 2007 in Idaho on Page B1 Although they’re half a world away from Idaho, the Marine fighter pilots serving with the Black Sheep Squadron have been following efforts to rename the airfield at the Coeur d’Alene …
White-water park worries some fish fans

October 6, 2007 in City on Page A1 A white-water park planned for downtown Spokane is prompting an undercurrent of anxiety over possible impacts to the river’s remaining population of native fish. Although the park’s designer insists fish …
Land swap may cut recreational access

October 5, 2007 in City on Page B2 South Stevens County residents are holding out hope that a proposed exchange of state parcels won’t strip their area of public recreation sites. The Washington Department of Natural Resources has …
Governor admits climate is warming

October 2, 2007 in Idaho on Page A1 MOSCOW – Scientists and energy experts stood on a podium at the University of Idaho on Monday and proclaimed that the debate over climate change is dead. Humans are making …
Aquifer protection urged

September 28, 2007 in Idaho on Page B1 The vast pool of water buried below Spokane and Kootenai counties needs to be protected and conserved now, before it’s unable to slake the region’s thirst, according to political leaders …
Homes in harm’s way

September 26, 2007 in Idaho on Page A1 Firefighters are increasingly at risk and American taxpayers will face soaring costs to protect the growing number of homes popping up across forested stretches of the West, according to a …
Buyers pony up for mustangs

September 22, 2007 in Idaho on Page A1 Decades ago – possibly even centuries – Mustang 2359’s ancestors had been turned loose by a pioneer, a cavalry officer, a tribal member or maybe even a conquistador. But the …
Reservoir could spread radiation

September 19, 2007 in City on Page B1 A huge reservoir proposed to irrigate farms in the parched Yakima Valley could also saturate radioactive soils below the nearby Hanford Nuclear Reservation and push the contamination into the Columbia …
Montana governor fetches attention

September 16, 2007 in Idaho on Page A1 HELENA – “Get a dog.” That’s the advice Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer has for Idaho Democrats, who continue to be blasted out of the ballot boxes by Republicans.
Wolf kills calf

September 8, 2007 in City on Page A1 Any doubts over the return of wolves to Washington were erased Friday when the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service confirmed that a calf in northeastern Washington had been killed by …
Deal preserves forestland

September 6, 2007 in Idaho on Page B1 This morning, a conservation easement will be signed to forever preserve 1,643 acres of private forest ground in the Cabinet Mountain foothills southeast of Bonners Ferry. The land supported three …
Animals rescued from home

September 5, 2007 in Idaho on Page B1 A pair of Kootenai County residents face 21 counts of animal cruelty after law officers found a menagerie of emaciated animals – including dogs, cats, guinea pigs and two whitetail …
Drought draining region’s rivers

September 1, 2007 in Idaho on Page A1 Severe drought conditions are expanding across the Inland Northwest, with forests and fields crackling under weeks of heat and rivers trickling with record-low flows, according to a briefing issued Thursday …