NOTICE: this is the author’s version of a work that was accepted for publication in Journal of Environmental Management. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. A definitive version was subsequently published in Journal of Environmental Management 92.8 (2011): 2069-2075 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2011.03.030 ; Non-amended soils affected by pyritic sludge residues were monitored for 7 years to assess the long-term natural attenuation ability of these soils. The decrease in both the total concentration of elements (particularly As) and (NH4)2SO4-extractable fractions of Mn, Cu, Zn, and Cd below maximum permissible levels indicate a successful natural ability to attenuate soil pollution. Soil acidification by pyrite oxidation and rainfall-enhanced leaching were the largest contributors to the reduction of high (Mn, Cu, Zn and Cd) and low (Fe, Al, and As) availability metals. Periodic use of correlation and spatial distribution analysis was useful in monitoring elemental dispersion and soil property/element relationships