An Antidote to Copper Theft

An Antidote to Copper Theft

A streetlight outage used to mean a burned-out lamp. Today, it can also mean a stolen wire or copper theft. In Long Beach, repairs after copper theft can involve replacing underground wiring, conduit, and pull boxes, often requiring specialized materials and multiple crews. A single incident can even leave several blocks without lighting. City officials reported that streetlight repair spending had increased by 724% over two years, with about one in five recent work orders linked to wire theft.

Los Angeles is facing a similar challenge. Copper theft and vandalism account for around 40% of the city’s streetlight service requests, and repairs related to theft can cost at least four times more than routine maintenance. The city tried several ways to protect its infrastructure, including burying copper deeper, securing access points, and installing cameras. Yet the problem continued.

Solar streetlighting offers a different approach. Solar lights generate and store their own power, so they do not need underground power cables or a connection to the utility grid. Los Angeles found encouraging results from solar pilots in Van Nuys, Watts, and Historic Filipinotown, with fewer maintenance calls and minimal vandalism. The city subsequently committed to converting up to 60,000 streetlights to solar.

For locations repeatedly affected by copper theft, solar can eliminate one of the biggest vulnerabilities of a grid-connected streetlight. Instead of protecting miles of underground copper, cities can provide lighting without relying on it in the first place.