Comments from the Technical Advisor regarding the reclassification of copper as a precious metal

Comments by the Technical Advisor.

I was approached by a local radio station to comment on what impact I think the process of classifying copper as a precious metal would have on the theft of non-ferrous metals in South Africa. I subsequently first contacted several of the leading role players in this regard in the country, in order to determine their feelings as well.

It was noted by all that we did investigate this issue with the help of Business Against Crime a few years ago and decided to shelve the proposal due to the following reasons:

1. It would really be impossible for manufacturers, distributors, contractors and Utilities alike to implement and manage all the new regulations that they will have to adhere to when in possession of items containing copper. This will also cost a lot of money to implement for everyone involved.
2. At present there are not enough resources from government to administer the present laws and regulations, let alone managing this very difficult process.
3. It is envisaged that this implementation will punish the legal entities more than the illegal ones, as they in any case disregard any rules and regulations in order to make an “extra buck”
4. The theft of Utility metals has escalated over the years and at present at least half of the items stolen does not contain any copper, therefore they will only revert to other items to steal that is not regulated.

We, therefore, felt that nothing has drastically changed for the good since our investigation, to indicate that we should change our viewpoint. I, therefore, responded by saying that we would highly appreciate any effort by anyone to assist us in the process of combating Utility metal theft. However, we feel that there needs to be a lot of interaction with all the relevant role players before such a process can be successfully implemented.

We would, in the meantime, strongly suggest that the government rather ensure that a dedicated SAPS Unit be formed as soon as possible, which would focus only on Utility metal / non-ferrous metal theft. Furthermore, that there should be pressure placed on those responsible to draw up the regulations of the new law so that we can at last start using it for the goal it was written for, namely to stop the illegal trading in non ferrous metals in Southern Africa.

Rens Bindeman