Residents raise PFAS concerns, surveillance questions and code-records request at Waukee open forum

During open forum, Veronica Lack, who said she serves as a Dallas County soil and water conservation commissioner, urged testing for PFAS and other agricultural chemicals in local tap water and described out‑of‑state lab results she paid for that, she said, showed multiple herbicide and pesticide ingredients.

“We need to know what's in their water,” Veronica Lack told the council, and asserted that one test showed 2,4‑D choline “way over the maximum contaminant level set by the EPA.” She asked the council and residents to pursue testing and cited a prior legal suit and a state mapping commitment in other watersheds.

Resident Charles Jeffrey Williams asked where the public can find records of nuisance citations such as overgrown grass or snow‑removal notices; the moderator said citations generally are not posted online and suggested Williams speak with the head of community development after the meeting. Jonathan Aberg, identifying himself as a Des Moines constituent, said he has filed a complaint with the attorney general regarding vendor practices and warned that automated license‑plate readers and AI cataloging of vehicles raise constitutional and civil‑liberty concerns. “All these automated license plate readers that use artificial intelligence to catalog our vehicles,” he said, “to me, this just doesn't really feel like something that's congruent with the Constitution.”

None of the comments prompted a formal council directive during the meeting; council members and staff encouraged speakers to follow up with staff after the meeting for more detail or next steps.