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A diesel fuel spill at a concentration of 1 L m(-2) soil was simulated on a 12 m(2) plot of agricultural land, and natural attenuation of aliphatic hydrocarbons was monitored over a period of 400 days following the spill after which the aliphatic hydrocarbon concentrations were found to be below the legal contamination threshold for soil. The main fraction of these compounds (95%) remained at the surface layer (0-10 cm). Shortly after the spill (viz. between days 0 and 18), evaporation was the main origin of the dramatic decrease in pollutant concentrations in the soil. Thereafter, soil microorganisms used aliphatic hydrocarbons as sources of carbon and energy, as confirmed by the degradation ratios found. Soil quality indicators, soil microbial biomass and dehydrogenase activity, regained their original levels about 200 days after the spill. (C) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.