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Just have a look at a typical construction site today. Amongst all the construction materials piled around, there are huge spools of electric wiring. And each of those spools has a sign marked “NOT COPPER”. It seems strange, but it’s preventive, because copper theft is pervasive. The local news has no shortage of stories about copper theft, and about people stealing wire to sell the valuable copper content. In Canada and the United States it’s actually becoming a serious problem.

Even for the seasoned metal collector, there are times when telling the difference between brass and copper can be a challenge. To begin with, copper is a so-called “single” metal, which means that all copper objects have basically the same physical properties. As for brass, it’s considered an alloy (a blend) of copper and zinc, and oftentimes, other metals. Because of this blend, there is no surefire way to identify brass. The good news is that brass colour is very distinctive from copper.

Like many things today, we don’t give much attention to copper metal. We don’t even notice that it’s an integral part of day-to-day life. And while we might be more aware of iron and aluminum in our daily lives, copper is actually quite indispensible. It has countless applications in industry and manufacturing, and is commonly used where corrosion-resistance and electrical conductivity are fundamental. Importantly, copper is a highly recyclable metal, and with an endless lifespan.

Most people don’t think about the amount of garbage they generate, or even what happens to it once it’s collected. The fact is, most garbage is taken to landfill sites, and “buried”. Needless to say, the landfill sites are filling up, and running out. And because incineration is unpopular and untenable as an alternative, recycling has become a viable option, particularly in the last decade.

Copper and copper alloys have been widely recycled for the last few hundred years. Historically, when virgin copper ore wasn’t available, copper objects were melted down and then re-cast as new. Interestingly, during many war times, copper and copper alloys were very often recycled, simply out of dire need. Since then, recycled copper has continued to be a major source of copper metal around the world (it accounts for almost half of all the copper produced annually).