The Pesticide Price Tag 

David Pimentel Data in The Way We Grow 1993

It is impossible to put an exact dollar value on a human life lost or wildlife destroyed because of pesticide poisoning. But for the past several years David Pimentel, a Cornell University entomologist, has taken on the monumental task of calculating the indirect, or hidden costs of pesticide use costs that don't get taken into account in the usual cost/benefit analyses conducted by industry or government regulators. In 1992, Pimentel estimated that the environmental and social costs from pesticides in the U.S. total more than $8 billion a year:

Public health impacts                     $787,000,000
Domestic animal deaths and contamination    30,000,000
Loss of natural enemies                    520,000,000
Cost of pesticide resistance             1,400,000,000
Honeybee and pollination losses            320,000,000
Crop losses                                942,000,000
Fishery losses                              24,000,000
Bird losses                              2,100,000,000
Groundwater contamination                1,800,000,000
Government regulations to prevent damage   200,000,000
Total                                   $8,123,000,000

source: Annie Witte Garland with Mother's & Others for a Livable Planet. The Way We Grow: Good Sense Solutions for Protecting Our families from Pesticides in Food. Berkeley Books, New York. Jul93. (Mothers & Others has since been disbanded, but may come back soon)