The heavy metal effects on the degradation of fluorene by Sphingobacterium sp. KM-02 was determined in liquid cultures. The results showed that 10 mg/L cadmium, copper, zinc, and lead not only affected the growth of KM-02 with fluorene but also the ability of growing or resting cells to degrade this compound. Growth and fluorene degradation were strongly inhibited by cadmium and copper at 10 mg/L, while the inhibitory effect of zinc and lead at the same concentration or at 100 mg/L were not significant. In contrast, arsenic did not affect degradation or growth, even at very high concentrations of 100 mg/L. Subsequent analyses additionally revealed that concentrations of arsenic remained unchanged following incubation, while those of cadmium and copper decreased significantly.