Over 50% of the wells in the Nambe region of northern New Mexico exceed the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's recommended drinking water standard of 20 micrograms L -1 for 238 U. Uranium uptake was estimated in tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum), squash (Cucurbita pepo), lettuce (Lactuca scarriola), and radish (Raphanus sativus) irrigated with Nambe well water containing less than 1, 150, 500, and 1200 micrograms U L -1 . Plant uptake and human dose and toxicity associated with ingestion of water and produce and inhalation of irrigated soil related to gardening activities were evaluated. Uranium concentration in plants increased linearly with increasing U concentration in irrigation water, particularly in lettuce and radish. The estimated total committed effective dose equivalent for 70 years of maximum continuous exposure, via the three pathways to well water containing 1200 mg U L -1 , was 0.17 mSv (17 mrem) with a corresponding kidney concentration of 0.8 mg U g -1 kidney.
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