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Abstract-This study investigated the ability of a microbial community to degrade linear alkylbenzene sulfonate (LAS) in soil columns under water-saturated conditions. The microbial mineralization of LAS was further studied in a batch experiment using pre-exposed and unexposed soil as well as soil from the inlet and outlet of the columns. The LAS (4 mg/L) was added continuously to the columns. Three pulses of 14 C-labeled LAS ( 14 C-dodecyl-[6]-benzene sulfonate) were added at intervals of 2 weeks, and the mineralization was measured as production of 14 CO 2 . The primary degradation of LAS was close to 100% in the columns, whereas the mineralization of the 14 C-labeled compound reached only 9%. The degradation products of LAS proved to be significantly less sorbtive than LAS itself. In the batch experiment, mineralization of LAS occurred in unexposed soil after a short lag phase. The mineralization proved to be more dependent on a high representation of biomass than on previous exposure to LAS.