The concentrations of iron, manganese, nickel, copper, zinc, lead, and cadmium in a domestic sewage effluent were effectively reduced during percolation through about 8 feet of calcareous soil material contained in lysimeters. Strontium concentrations were not reduced by similar filtration. Cobalt and hexavalent chromium were not present in the effluent in quantities detectable by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. In a field study conducted on large plots over a three year period, larger quantities of iron, manganese, and copper in the filtrate indicate the possible saturation of the soil with several trace metals in a relatively short period of time.