When I lived in an area close to the railroad tracks, I was baffled by the constant theft of large spools of copper.
I couldn”t fathom who would want these and why.
Eventually there were cameras installed and regular area checks by police and railroad employees. Security guards were hired on new construction sites. I”m pretty sure those added expenses were passed on to the consumer.
Thieves are not just after jewelry, cars, prescriptions, cash or electronics. Metals, primarily copper theft, amount to a cost of more than $1 billion per year according to the U.S. Department of Energy.
Copper is often referred to as the red metal.
Pipes, wires, cables, gutters and flashing are ripped from walls and buildings. Rooftop air units are stripped of copper coils. Thieves target copper in difficult to secure areas. Copper theft is common on construction sites, in vacant buildings, communications towers, electrical substations and foreclosed properties.
In addition, the collateral damage done ripping pipes and wires out of walls far exceeds the actual cost of the copper stolen.
But why copper?
Copper is an especially hot commodity based on its rising value in the health care field for its antibacterial qualities and its ability to limit the spread of pathogenic micro-organisms. It inhibits the spread of infections inside of hospitals. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recognizes copper as the leading anti-bacterial metal in the world. The possibilities for copper use in hospitals are nearly endless.
It is also traditionally known as one of the best conductors of electricity and plays a strong role in the electrical and electronics industries.
Another place that copper may be utilized is in copper-lined air conditioning filters. It”s been proven that certain bacterial strains and funguses develop rapidly in humid, dark environments, often in ventilation ducts in air conditioning equipment. The circulation of air through the systems facilitates the spread of micro-organisms in the form of aerosols which, can lead to serious infections, especially among hospital patients whose immune systems have already been compromised.
Copper is not the only hot metal on the market for health care. Silver is known for its antimicrobial effects. It is one of the oldest antimicrobial agents.
The ancient Phoenicians, 1200 B.C., stored water in silver bottles to prevent spoiling.
Hippocrates, known as the father of modern medicine, noted in the fourth century B.C. that silver had beneficial healing and anti-disease properties.
According to the Wall Street Journal”s Market Watch, copper and silver futures are every bit as bright as gold.
Metal theft occurs on a large scale and increases when worldwide prices for scrap metal escalate. A dramatic rise in metal theft is the result of rapid industrialization in India and China.
Items stolen in metal theft are stolen for extrinsic value as raw material or commodities. These items are ultimately scrapped or recycled to provide material for making new products.
A thief is a thief and victims of theft are left to pick up the pieces and rebuild emotionally, physically and financially because of another person”s or people”s greed. Theft of this proportion crumbles away at the very foundation of new medical technology, new building, the economy, the country and the world as a whole.
Mandy Feder is the Record-Bee news editor. She can be reached at mandyfeder@yahoo.com or 263-5636 Ext. 32.
