For years Gaza's sewage system has been close to collapse.
Beaches along the Strip's 40km of coast are heavily polluted by waste being pumped directly into the sea - 14,000 cubic metres of it per day.
And the people who depend on the Mediterranean for their livelihoods are the ones who suffer the most.
Now, work on a new mutli-million dollar treatment plant is underway. People are hopeful this will mean the days of dumping waste into the sea becomes a thing of the past.
Al Jazeera's Nicole Johnston reports from Gaza.
