Copper theft is plunging streets into darkness and costing councils a lot of money to repair. Photo: Emre Can Acer /www.pexels.com
Copper theft is costing councils big time and more has to be done to close the market for illegal sales of the metal, says Moreton Bay City Council.
Moreton Bay Mayor Peter Flannery wants the Queensland LNP Government to live up to a pre-election promise cracking down on ‘off-the-books’ sale of scrap metal.
“Costly copper theft will continue to run rampant until action is taken,” he warns.
He says that the cost of replacing copper wires ripped from sports clubs, street lights and construction sites since 2021 is now at $500,000.
“That’s not to mention the many millions every year that copper theft costs the State Government as well as businesses,” Flannery says.
He adds that closing legal loopholes will stamp out the crime and wants changes to the Second-Hand Dealers and Pawnbrokers Act 2003 that will bring Queensland scrap metal laws into line with other states.
These changes would also ban cash payments for scrap metal, force scrap metal dealers to report suspicious transactions to police and require dealers to keep detailed records.
STUCK IN A CIRCUIT
The call to update the Act was backed by the Local Government Association of Queensland and led to a parliamentary inquiry into scrap metal theft in 2023.
“Current legislation allows thieves to take stolen copper to a pawn broker without identification and receive a cash payment,” Flannery says.
“We’re stuck in a circuit of theft and repair – this situation cannot continue.
“Thieves are putting lives at risk, including their own, as they remove live wires, which is leaving streets and even highways in the dark and kids unable to play sport at night.”
Deputy Mayor Jodie Shipway said a ‘no cash for scrap scheme’, like that in NSW, would save money and maybe lives.
“The State Government can implement a solution to end the resale market for stolen copper which will be far more effective than any amount of CCTV, policing or other deterrents that cost taxpayers significantly,” she says.
