Source 3: Shipping harms the environment

We need our shipping industry. It is vital for

global trade and brings wealth to millions of
people. Tourism brings jobs to local people
and this benefits the economy. The history of
human civilization is the history of travel by
sea. But there are problems. In 2008, Oxford
University and the United Nations showed
that large container and cruise ships destroy
marine life and coral reefs, reducing
biodiversity. This affects the levels of oxygen
in the sea. The Guardian newspaper in the
United Kingdom in 2017 said that the amount
of oxygen in the oceans has fallen by 2 per
cent in the past 50 years and is falling faster.
Food supplies from the sea are affected by
shipping. The United States Environmental
Protection Agency estimates that each 3000-
passenger cruise ship dumps 210 000 gallons
of sewage into our oceans every week! We
must find ways to solve these problems but
also keep the benefits. Extract from a lecture
given in Europe in 2001

a) ‘Shipping harms the environment.’

What are the strengths and weaknesses of
the argument supporting this claim?

(b) ‘Tourism brings jobs to local people.’

How could you test this claim? You should
consider the types of information, sources
of evidence or methods you might use.