Once a major headache for police and lawmakers, copper theft is way down this year thanks to police crackdowns, tougher laws for copper sellers and recycling companies, and plummeting prices for scrap metal.

From January to October, some 71 cases of copper theft were reported islandwide, down from 266 cases last year and 426 cases in 2006. The total losses for the copper theft cases come to about $260,000 this year — down from nearly $1 million in both 2006 and 2007.

"We definitely have seen a decrease," said police Maj. Kurt Kendro, who has headed up two recent copper crackdowns.

Meanwhile, the lights on state highways — previously a frequent target for thieves stealing copper wiring — haven't been hit since June. "We've actually noticed it (thefts) tapering down," said Tammy Mori, state Transportation Department spokeswoman.

Authorities attribute at least part of the decrease in thefts to the nosedive in the price of copper. The price has fallen to nearly half of what it was worth this summer — and it's still falling. For thieves, copper is no longer the lucrative crime it once was, and it's not worth the increased risk of getting caught.

Copper thefts have been a major headache for authorities and lawmakers nationwide over the past two to three years, as copper prices rose to record levels. Locally and across the country, thieves brazenly targeted copper pipes, wiring and other items from homes, businesses, schools and construction yards.

Road lights were also hit, and stretches of O'ahu freeways are still in the dark thanks to copper thieves. In April, thieves stole more than a mile and a half of copper — then worth about $33,600 — from a stretch of H-1 Freeway in Kunia. In June, a man was arrested after targeting copper wire on the H-1 in Makakilo.

"A lot of theft was going on," said Robert Okuda, manager of Okuda Metal Inc. in Kalihi and a champion for tougher laws to curb copper theft. Okuda said about three months ago, the price of copper was a near-record $2.60 a pound.

Now, it's about $1.10 — and dropping.

The freefall in the price for copper materials comes as recycling companies in the Islands and around the country are seeing big declines in demand and pricing for all matter of scrap metal. After a frenzied peak around September, prices for scrap metal nosedived to some of their lowest levels in eight to 10 years.

The decline is a global one, largely spurred by the worldwide economic meltdown that has frozen credit markets, spurred millions of layoffs and slowed or halted construction. The scrap metal price declines have been so dramatic that some mills that convert scrap metal into materials are closing.

"The drop in prices is significant," said Karl Motoyama, coordinator for the state Office of Solid Waste Management at the state Department of Health. He said the dynamics of the market are volatile — so it's unclear when prices will go up.

ILLEGAL DUMPING

Hanni Hartmann, president of Paragon Metals International in Honolulu, agreed, saying the ups and downs of the scrap metal market are unprecedented. He said the price for premium scrap steel used to be about $700 per ton. It's now $200 a ton.

And Hartmann predicts though the drop in prices for scrap may have helped curb the long spate of copper thefts, it could worsen another big problem — illegal dumping of household construction materials and abandoned vehicles.

Robert Harris, executive director of the Sierra Club in Hawai'i, said some people could find it not worth the drive to take items to a recycler if the prices keep dropping. "We hope that people are cognizant of the fact that there is a value to recycling beyond the sheer economic return," Harris said.

"But certainly, there's a possibility" that dumping will go up, he added.

Karen Shinmoto, business manager at Island Recycling, said many recycling centers just aren't buying scrap metal. "People say it might get worse before it gets better," she said, adding the company is already stockpiling items rather than moving them in the tough market and is also cutting back on overtime.

So far, no one has been laid off, she said.

Kendro, commander of the Kalihi police station, said the price of copper first started to rise about two years ago, when China was in the midst of a construction boom and a major copper plant in Asia shut down, spurring a shortage.

In contrast, the market is glutted with copper right now that no one wants.

Still, Kendro added, it's important officials stay on top of the issue. He said lawmakers need to make sure a major law targeting copper thieves, which requires they show a picture identification and a notarized statement saying where they got their copper from, isn't allowed to sunset on July 1 as scheduled.

The law, he said, "has put recyclers on notice." Kendro, who oversaw two copper theft crackdowns in September 2007 and from November 2006 to February 2007, added police continue to monitor recycling centers for copper thieves.