Total Cost of a Service
Economic aspects of sewage sludge management

The total cost of a service, as defined in environmental economics, corresponds to the total cost (to society at large) of providing that service. It is the sum of all costs borne by society as a whole, not just by the producer or the direct user.

Formally:

Total cost = total private costs + environmental and health externalities + opportunity cost.

In other words, the total cost of a service in environmental economics corresponds to the total cost to society: the sum of private costs, opportunity costs, and the environmental, health, and social externalities associated with its production and consumption.