The Yukon Fish and Game Association is continuing its efforts to handle the ongoing conflicts over the reintroduced elk in the Yukon, specifically in the Ibex Valley area.

The organization is preparing to hire an elk-agriculture co-ordinator with funding from two Yukon government departments.

The co-ordinator, according to executive director Eric Schroff, is to be a liaison between the competing groups concerned about the elk, such as hunters and agricultural producers.

The conflict, he told the Star late last month, has been going on for many years.

Most of it revolves around the damage the elk are doing to farm fields and crops. He said the animals “invade” those areas in search of food, and farmers have lacked effective tools to deal with the situation.

Elk were reintroduced to the Yukon a few decades ago, and have thrived in the Ibex Valley.

Schroff said the association has been working with the government and various groups for a “number of years” on a strategy that would attempt to reconcile the various competing needs where the elk are concerned.

“There’s been a lot of money spent on fencing,” Schroff said, not always with success.

Conflict hunts, where problem elk have been culled, are another tactic that hasn’t succeeded as well as it could have.

Schroff said there have been no long-term solutions to the problem.

About two years ago, a working group was established to brainstorm the issue.

The result was an agreement to try a trial program, with an elk co-ordinator to be the liaison.

The job ad says the position will head a two-year pilot program to foster collaboration on the elk issue among farmers, hunters, the public and the government.

A steering committee will oversee the project.

The primary aim is to try to “condition” the elk to stay away from agricultural properties.

“This position has been a long time in the making,” Schroff said. “It’s going to provide a dedicated person to co-ordinate things.”

The advertisement has closed, he told the Star, with a number of applications submitted.

Some of those were from very good applicants, he said, impressing the hiring group.

This comes after years of seemingly intractable problems caused by elk herds, with farmers ending up with destroyed crops, broken fencing and barren pastures.

Elk are not technically native to the Yukon, having not lived in the territory consistently for about 1,500 years.

In 1951, Yukon hunters advocated for the introduction of a limited number of elk to increase hunting opportunities. This was done through lobbying by the fish and game association.

Since then, several rounds of introductions have been done and two distinct herds were established, one called the Braeburn herd and the other the Takhini herd. The last rounds of introductions were completed in the 1990s.

The Takhini herd has about 200 animals, while the Braeburn herd has about 60.