(The Center Square) – As the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission considers updating policy regarding its involvement in electric vehicle charging services, stakeholders have noted the ongoing issue of charging station copper wire thefts.

“We in the Pacific Northwest are right in ground zero of thieves and criminal gangs who are cutting cable for copper and recycling it in the black market and so these public infrastructure assets are at risk,” Alliance for Transportation Electrification Executive Director Phillip Jones told the commission at its July 2 meeting.