Protecting water through policy and law

3. The very rough analysis suggests that the true cost of food is at least 2.5 times the apparent cost:
Apparent cost of food
Value of farm and farm related activity (USDA ) = $850 billion
Value of food retail and all food service (US ERS) = $800 billion
TOTAL $1.6 trillion
True cost should include:
Health Costs ($3 tr x .8 x.8 x.5) (per Tyler Norris) = $ 960 Bn
Worker Living Wage (22 mm workers x $10/HR (amt. wages decreased 1978-2013) x 2000 hrs)
= $440 Bn
Soil loss ($40/acre/year x 300 mm acres farmed x.5 (to be conservative) (from corn panel) = $6 Bn
Farm Bill = $80 Bn
Water pollution (from nitrogen panel) = $97-625 (taking average) = $360 bn
Water Use (355 Bn/gal/day US water use x .3 (Percent agriculture use) x .$.01 (ave cost of water
per gallon) x 365 days/ year). = $388 Bn
GHG (6.7 MMT CO2e/yr x .3 (ag%) x $70/ton social cost ) = $ 100 mm
TOTAL ADDITIONAL COSTS
(not counting animal/human suffering; cancer costs; lost productivity; wildlife impacts, etc.) = $ 2.2 trillion
LOW ESTIMATE TOTAL COSTS
$ 3.8 trillion = roughly 2.5 times apparent cost