Infrastructure Vulnerabilities Exposed by Market Shifts
Los Angeles — Copper wire, a foundational component of the U.S. electrical and telecommunications grid, has become a primary target for theft as global commodity prices surge. The removal of this cabling from utility poles, underground conduits, and bridges is resulting in widespread service interruptions, including street lighting outages and disruptions to emergency communication lines.
The operational impact extends beyond immediate service loss, with repair costs increasingly transferred to consumers and taxpayers.
Economic Drivers and Market Data
Law enforcement officials attribute the rise in theft frequency directly to market dynamics. According to data from JPMorgan, copper prices reached historic highs this year, driven by increased demand for data center construction and market speculation regarding potential new tariffs under the Trump administration. Domestic copper prices have risen by approximately 30% in 2025.
This appreciation has created a lucrative secondary market for stripped wire, incentivizing the removal of cabling from public and private infrastructure.
Regional Impact: Los Angeles
Los Angeles has emerged as a focal point for this trend. The city, currently recovering from recent wildfires and preparing for the 2026 World Cup and 2028 Olympics, faces significant challenges in maintaining consistent lighting and power in affected areas.
The NCTA, a trade group representing the internet and television industry, reports over 15,000 incidents of damage to communication networks nationwide between June 2024 and June 2025. California and Texas accounted for more than 50% of these events, affecting approximately 9.5 million customers.
Investigators with the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department (LASD) indicate that these incidents are now daily occurrences rather than sporadic events.
Case Study: The Sixth Street Bridge
The Sixth Street Bridge, a significant municipal project completed in 2022, has experienced extensive stripping of its electrical infrastructure. Approximately 38,000 feet (seven miles) of copper wire has been removed, resulting in an estimated $2.5 million in damage according to Assemblymember Mark González. Consequently, the bridge’s lighting systems remain non-functional.
The LASD notes that theft is also prevalent at construction sites, particularly those involved in rebuilding efforts following the Palisades and Eaton wildfires. The lack of serial numbers on standard municipal wiring makes recovering stolen materials or tracing them to specific scrap dealers difficult.
Municipal and Corporate Response
Theft-related streetlight outages in Los Angeles increased tenfold between 2017 and 2022. In response, the office of Mayor Karen Bass has emphasized the public safety risks associated with unlit streets and disabled traffic signals. The city is currently exploring the deployment of solar-powered streetlights to eliminate accessible copper wiring from the infrastructure.
Telecommunications provider AT&T has also reported a sharp increase in incidents, documenting 2,200 cases in California in 2024, compared to 71 in 2021. The company spent over $60 million in 2024 on repairs related to copper theft in the state.
AT&T is accelerating its transition to fiber-optic networks, which contain no copper and are therefore of no value to scrap thieves. However, until legacy copper networks are fully decommissioned, they remain vulnerable. The company has implemented physical hardening measures, such as sealing manholes with concrete, though these barriers have shown mixed effectiveness against persistent extraction efforts.
Legislative Measures
In October 2025, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed legislation designed to disrupt the illicit resale market. The new law increases penalties for theft and imposes stricter record-keeping and verification requirements on recyclers and junk dealers. California is one of 13 states to enact similar statutes in 2025.
Conclusion
The correlation between commodity markets and infrastructure stability highlights a critical vulnerability in urban planning. While local governments and corporations are implementing defensive measures—ranging from legislative crackdowns to physical hardening—the economic incentive provided by high copper prices remains the primary catalyst.
As long as the resale value of the metal exceeds the risk of prosecution, traditional deterrents may prove insufficient. The long-term resolution likely lies not in policing, but in the technological transition away from copper-dependent infrastructure toward fiber-optics and localized solar solutions, effectively removing the asset from the equation.