Abstract: The present invention provides a direct manner of assessing the bioremediation potential of microbes in a soil sample by detecting and enumerating the microbes that have the necessary functional genes to metabolize specific pollutants. In particular, the present invention provides novel compositions and methods for analyzing a sample containing a diverse population of microbes to detect and quantify the presence of specific functional aromatic pollutant oxygenase genotypes in the population. The detection and quantification of genotypes in accordance with the invention provides a manner in which the bioremediation potential of the sample can be assessed in a reliable manner. Quantification is achieved in accordance with the invention by quantitative PCR amplification using primers that are constructed or selected to amplify target regions identified to be included in conserved regions of genes from diverse microbial species that have aromatic pollutant metabolism functionality.