The City of Fort Smith entered into a consent decree with the Environmental Protection Agency in 2015 after years-long violations of the Clean Water Act. According to the EPA, the city’s aging infrastructure allowed sewage to go into the Arkansas River. The consent decree requires the city make an estimated $480 million of sewer upgrades over the course of 12 years. City leaders are meeting with the EPA this week in Texas with hopes of renegotiating parts of the agreement.