The story is incredible. A man goes onto the property of the Okonite Co., climbs onto the roof of the facility and begins dismantling air-conditioning units to recover the copper. An arrest is made, but not before up to $150,000 damage is done to the units.

As sensational as the incident is, the theft of copper from air-conditioning units is becoming a disturbing trend.

We recently told of another story. St. George Baptist Church in rural western Orangeburg County discovered an entire AC unit had been stolen from one of its buildings. Thieves are getting bold.

The threat of being ripped off doesn't end with your air conditioner. The second most popular item is under your car: the catalytic converter. Cars left by the roadside have been targeted, with the thief able to remove the converter in short order. Who would have thought?

The idea is to retrieve the copper from air conditioners and platinum from converters. The metals are soaring in value. Couple growing value with tough economic times and the money is a bigger deal than ever.

There also is the matter of a market. The traditional problem of selling stolen goods has not been the same issue with recyclables. There has been very little way to track the source of the metal, and companies dealing in scrap and such have had little oversight. That is changing with the boom in recycling.

Not only is law enforcement now on the watch for those trying to sell illegally obtained metals, but the recycling companies have legal responsibilities.

South Carolina law requires purchasers of copper to get a copy of the seller's ide.jpgication, along with license plate numbers and fingerprints. Records are to be maintained for five years from the date of purchase. The law also applies to the purchase of copper wire, pipe, bars and sheeting, along with aluminum (though not the purchase or sale of aluminum cans).

It's never been any secret that recycling would become a big thing when there is a market for the recyclable. That's when people can profit from recycling. Where there is profit, there is participation.

Ten years ago, aluminum cans sold for about 21 cents to 30 cents a pound. Cans now sell for 80 cents per pound.

Copper 10 years ago sold for 50 cents a pound. Today, $2.90 per pound.

Scrap metal sells for $7 per 100 pounds.

For government, recycling has not been a profitable venture. There generally has not been enough demand for the vast quantity of plastics, paper, metals, etc. Recycling has been a priority as much to slow the flow into the waste stream as anything. And government sets the example of being environmentally conscious.

With the value of metals and some other recyclables today, government recycling sites are not so popular. Bet you won't find many aluminum cans in trash cans either.

With value always comes people ready to rip off someone to get the money. That is what is happening these days. Battling the problem has become a priority, with law enforcement exchanging information on potential suspects and possible liquidators of the materials.

Couple their efforts with responsible policies by recycling companies and people abusing the system can be put out of business and maybe get exposure to metal bars of another type.

You must be logged in to comment.