REGINA -- A Regina landlord is picking up the pieces after one of his rental properties had its copper plumbing stolen.

"What they have done is ripped off the pipeline which goes from the main line to the heater," Mohammad Arif told CTV News.

The plumber called to repair this home said he has dealt with about 60 cases himself.

"I've lost the rent as well as a couple thousand dollars damages too. I'm not sure if there's any kind of law in Saskatchewan that covers this kind of damage," Arif said

Provinces like British Columbia have enacted legislation which forces scrap metal dealers to keep track of who the sellers are.

Saskatchewan requires it for transactions at pawn shops but not for scrap metal.

"Saskatchewan is aware that other jurisdictions are or are thinking of introducing legislation regarding scrap or potentially introducing amendments to their pawn broker legislation to deal with scrap dealers and we are closely monitoring that legislation as it moves forward in other jurisdictions," Noel Busse with the Ministry of Justice said.

Arif would like to see a scrap metal registry. It could help landlords put an end to a very costly problem.