Susan Drumheller

Mary Clemens and Linda Fabrizius paint the tunnel between Kootenai Medical Center and North Idaho Cancer Center. Photo by Craig Buck/The Spokesman-Review

FOR THE RECORD (September 17, 1997): Fish kill clarification: A Tuesday article about a fish kill at the Kootenai Tribe's hatchery was unclear about the source of the water to the hatchery at the time of the kill. The hatchery gets its water from the North Water Co., which purchases water from the city of Bonners Ferry. The cause of the kill is believed to be a surge of chlorine during construction on water lines. A chlorine surge at the Kootenai Tribe's hatchery is suspected to wiping out a generation of white sturgeon. Photo by Liz Kishimoto/The Spokesman-Review

Lee Alan and Joanne Hodges and their dog, Licorice, stop at Hauser Lake North boat launch to do a little fishing. The dock has been the target of vandalism ever since the county started locking it up at night. Photo by Liz Kishimoto/The Spokesman-Review

The city of St. Maries, under pressure to comply with federal safe drinking water regulations, is holding a $5.5 million revenue bond election Nov. 4. But city officials still don't have all the information they need to ensure voters will be well-informed on Election Day.

The state of Idaho makes more money off 3,200 acres devoted to cottage sites than it does off nearly 2 million acres of grazing land. Regardless, 596 cabin owners who lease land from the state could soon see their rents double or triple. The 1,050 ranchers with state grazing leases will pay less next year for the same amount of forage.

Preserving the land 1. Wes and Gertie Hanson adhere to the philosphy of "walk this land gently." Photo by Craig Buck/The Spokesman-Review 2. Joseph and Gertrude Carder, with sons Alvis and Hiram, began farming Blackwell Hill in 1902. Photo courtesy of family

Above and beyond. An in-line skater glides past as Earl Gewecke of Northwest Steel paints the railing on the bridge over Atlas Road, west of Coeru d'Alene. Photo by Jesse Tinsley/The Spokesman-Review

The federal government has accused 23 more companies of mining pollution in the Coeur d'Alene Basin. The U.S. Department of Justice on Friday added defendants to its lawsuit aimed at companies whose operations damaged the environment.

A simmering dispute over a boat launch on Priest Lake has some neighbors talking about vigilante acts. They don't like the fact that the marina owner has placed a gate across a boat launch that their families have used for decades. "There's been lots of talk like 'Let's just go to the bar and find some big guys to take that gate out,"' said Sherry Bennett, whose family has had a cabin in the area since the 1960s. "We're ready for action to come to a head."

The death of a Jet-Skier Saturday was the latest in a string of boating deaths in Idaho this year, and the third recorded fatality in the state involving a personal watercraft. The Kootenai County Sheriff's Department still is seeking witnesses to the accident that killed 41-year-old Joseph Harper of the Spokane Valley.

Soon after Labor Day, lawmakers returning to Washington, D.C., plan to tackle one of the top Republican priorities for this session - Superfund reform. The lawmakers behind reform efforts claim their intent is to divert money from litigation into cleanup.

1. Tracy Just forges one of four hourseshoes Saturday during the competition at the North Idaho Fair. Photo by Craig Buck/The Spokesman-Review 2. Keith Fremlin cools one of his horseshoes. (This photo appeared in Spokane edition only.)

A family birthday celebration on Lake Coeur d'Alene ended in tragedy Saturday when a man was killed in a Jet Ski accident. Joseph Harper, 41, of Spokane was riding the Jet Ski in Beauty Bay when it collided with another personal watercraft operated by Harper's friend and neighbor, according to family members. The accident occurred about 5 p.m. when the sun was starting to set, leaving a blinding glimmer on the water's surface. "I think they couldn't see because of the sun," said Gena Meyer, Harper's daughter. Meyer said she didn't see the accident, but heard her father scream after being hit. "Then I didn't hear anything," she said, weeping. Friends and family pulled the unconscious Harper out of the water and took him by boat to the Higgens Point boat launch, where sheriff's deputies responded. CPR was initiated before paramedics arrived, and continued as an ambulance transported him to Kootenai Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. The man on the other watercraft reportedly was uninjured. His name was unavailable. About 10 of Harper's relatives and friends had gathered in Beauty Bay Saturday to celebrate a birthday, said sheriff's Sgt. Dan Soumas. The group had two power boats and the small watercrafts. Meyer said they often boat in the area. The accident occurred after Harper and his friend switched crafts. Harper was originally riding a larger watercraft, but was on a smaller one when the accident happened. Meyer said the two were "really good friends." The collision ripped a large hole in the fiberglass body of the Jet Ski's front end. The handlebars and seat were also damaged. The larger craft appeared relatively unscathed, except for a scraped bumper. Soumas said the county hadn't had a fatal boating accident since April 1995, when a 65-year-old fisherman drowned in Killarney Lake after his boat took on water.

Kevin Harris kisses his wife, Danielle, before being led away by Ferry County Sheriff Pete Warner, left, as he turns himself in at the Ferry County Courthouse in Republic, Wash., on Thursday. Photo by Dan McComb/The Spokesman-Review

Efforts to clean up mining pollution in the headwaters of the Coeur d'Alene River are starting to pay off, state officials said Wednesday. Two years of monitoring finished cleanup projects up Nine-Mile Creek, and along Elizabeth Park on the Coeur d'Alene River, show that those sites are no longer contributing zinc to the river, or are releasing only small amounts, according to the state Division of Environmental Quality. "Although these are still very preliminary results, they're the best results we have right now," said Geoff Harvey, DEQ scientist.

Milo Creek has quieted to a few ripples running through Kellogg's streets, but efforts to fix the creek's culvert system are racing ahead. "Even though it's still above ground, and it doesn't look like we've done squat, we've been pretty busy," said Jamie Sharp, Kellogg public works director. One contractor is on the job moving underground utilities out of the way for emergency repairs scheduled to begin the first of September.

Lessons for life. Nicole Earin works with Tessa Stoeser, 4, during swimming class Tuesday. Earin and her sister teach about 70 kids every two weeks in their backyard pool. Photo by Liz Kishimoto/The Spokesman-Review

The Spokane Riverboat Queen docks at Boothes Landing. Photo by Craig Buck/The Spokesman-Review

Don't take a trip into the national forest for granted. One day you might be charged an entrance fee. Like state parks budgets, the U.S. Forest Service is finding it increasingly difficult to keep up with maintenance and other costs associated with recreation on public lands. Last year, Congress authorized the Recreation Fee Demonstration Program, a four-year experiment with user fees on federal lands.

Terry Clark used to live near Farragut State Park years ago when the entry fee was $1. The park was like a second home. Only a buck to go sledding in the winter. Only a buck to swim at the beach, where lifeguards kept an eye on the water.

Spokane-area schoolchildren next year may be getting lessons on lead in the Spokane River. But Idaho mining interests are worried that those lessons could wind up resembling propaganda. The Inland Empire Public Lands Council, a Spokane-based environmental group, has received a $33,500 grant from the Washington Department of Ecology to develop a science curriculum on watershed health.

Two wild young sturgeon were caught recently in the Kootenai River, providing fish biologists with some evidence that experimental flows from Libby Dam may be key to survival of the endangered fish. "Some critics were saying, 'You're wasting your time,"' said Vaughn Paragamian of the Idaho Department of Fish and Game.

Ryan Tulloch, center, wearing a white T-shirt under his uniform, explains the work of digging a fire pit at Mowry State Park on Friday. Photo by Jesse Tinsley/The Spokesman-Review

'We get lots of looks'. Ryan White and Dave Hill are counting cars at the Prairie Avenue and Highway 41 intersection as part of a county traffic study. Photo by Craig Buck/The Spokesman-Review