For the last several months, the City of Huntington Beach has had a work crew on the pier. Their job is to remove unwanted aquatic life from around the pier. I see them often going over the side with various equipment, moving slowly and cautiously around, and appreciate their difficult work.

This morning they were back getting ready to go over the side and I decided to ask the crew what I thought was a simple question. I asked “So, I see the invasive species around the pier. What do you do with the black-breasted wave riders once you catch them.”.

This is their response, as directly quoted: “Well, we tend to leave them there. At this point, they’re pretty much hazardous material. If we bring them up, then we have to assume the responsibility for them. So, we leave them there and the city has to deal with it.”

You learn something new every day.