Michele Palma and the Dawson Group of Companies were convicted Wednesday of failing to comply with dangerous wildlife protection orders issued in 2018.

The offences fall under the Wildlife Act. Palma is the president of the group of companies.

In July 2018, Yukon conservation officers responded to a complaint of an aggressive bear in the McCrae subdivision of Whitehorse, Environment Yukon noted in a statement Thursday.

“Officers found that several bears were being attracted to and accessing large quantities of used cooking oil that was being improperly stored on the property,” the statement said.

“Later, while responding to another call about an aggressive bear, conservation officers discovered a second property in the Whitehorse Copper subdivision across the Alaska Highway, belonging to Palma, where improperly stored used cooking oil was also causing bears to become a nuisance and public safety concern.”

Palma was issued dangerous wildlife protection orders to clean up both sites in order to address the wildlife attractants of concern and prevent further wildlife conflicts.

Conservation officers found that while attempts were made to remove some of the attractants as ordered, the requirements in the orders were not met.

Those included the removal of oil-soaked soil which continued to be a wildlife attractant.

“Five black bears were found to be frequenting the McCrae site and feeding heavily on the used cooking oil,” the statement said.

“Three bears had to be euthanized because they had become food-conditioned and aggressive towards people.

“Three grizzly bears were also attracted to the McCrae site. They were captured and translocated.”

Bears that are attracted to and rewarded with human-sourced food can become a threat to public safety, Environment Yukon noted.

“They change their natural feeding behaviours, focusing on human food waste.

“They can become aggressive while defending these food sources and more bold in approaching humans as a result.”

Conservation officers observed more human-bear conflicts near these properties in 2018 and 2019.

“They believe that this directly related t o sites where bears had accessed the large volumes of used cooking oil and the smell that continued to be emitted from the contaminated soil,” the statement said.

“Bears are often just passing by, but are opportunists that will feed on easy access to things like the garbage and oil on the site.”

Sentencing had been expected to be scheduled for April 28, but Palma plans to appeal the convictions.

The Yukon government noted it relies on public support and participation to help it manage human activities in ways that conserve the natural environment.

“When there are Wildlife Act and Environment Act infractions, it is important for the public to know how they have been dealt with,” the government said.

Members of the public are encouraged to call the Turn in Poachers and Polluters (TIPP) line at 1-800-661-0525 to report potentially dangerous human-wildlife conflicts.