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Uniform approach to curb metal theft

It’s hoped that with a region-wide approach, junk dealers and metal thieves will find other targets than the electronic infrastructure that links municipalities and people.

A uniform bylaw for all municipalities should be ready this spring and allow Maple Ridge and the rest of Metro Vancouver to take a united approach to dealing with thefts of transmission wire, metal plaques and even iron road grates.

Maple Ridge is one of several municipalities on the Lower Mainland scrap metal task force trying to come up with uniform region-wide approach to the issue, with Maple Ridge bylaws director Liz Holitzky chairing the task force.

The new bylaw could include registration of most items when they’re taken to a scrap metal dealer, outright prohibition of other items and a reporting process.

She provided council slides that showed the damage caused by scrap metal thieves, including photos of downed wires, damaged poles, gaping dangerous holes in the road left by removed manhole covers and even the chopped up brass plaques that commemorated last year’s completion of the Pitt River Bridge.

Coun. Cheryl Ashlie said that a lobby of scrap metal dealers is strong and resulted in a previous bylaw in Langley city in 2008 being weakened. That bylaw was part of a regional effort involving representatives from different Lower Mainland municipalities.

Langley gave in on the requirement for scrap metal dealers to hold some goods bought in non-commercial transactions for seven days. That was intended to control cash transactions, but would have hurt operations because of the space required, dealers said. Now, Langley dealers who have video surveillance don’t have to wait that seven days.

If a clampdown on metal theft is successful, it could lead to more break-and-enters and more activity at pawn shops, said Ashlie, recounting a recent meeting of staff from different municipalities on the topic.

“They still need to have their money,” she added later.

“The expectation is that every municipal council will adopt the same bylaw so we have consistency across the region.”

Scrap metal theft costs hundreds of thousands of dollars, Ashlie added. Ideally, there would be a provincial law for that.

A typical copper telephone line theft costs the company an average of $50,000 per incident, and nets thieves just a couple hundred dollars.

With roughly 200 incidents in the Lower Mainland annually, scrap metal theft costs Telus in the range of $10 million every year.

The regional bylaw is expected to be back at council this spring.