In Baltimore County, violent crime is down, but incidents of theft are up. What's driven the increase is the lucrative market for scrap metal that has thieves yanking copper pipes out of the walls of vacant apartments and swiping catalytic converters from parked cars with the help of nothing more exotic than a cordless saw.

Between 2005 and last year, theft of valuable metal has increased 500 percent in the county, police report. It now represents nearly 2 percent of all the burglary and theft cases investigated by the county police.

Tonight, the Baltimore County Council has a golden opportunity to clamp down on the growing problem with a law that would require scrap metal processors to keep close records of what they buy - including checking the identification of the seller. They would also have to hold for at least five days items such as street light poles and cemetery urns that police may want to investigate as potentially stolen.

This last requirement has proved to be one of the most controversial elements of the measure, but it's essential that the council not relent on the waiting period despite considerable lobbying by the county's 18 scrap dealers, who stand to be inconvenienced.