The flow and transport of organic compounds in variably saturated porous media is investigated using a compositional simulator. The simulator incorporates a number of numerical options to maximize computational efficiency and accuracy. The effect of field scale heterogeneities on the movement of organic compounds is demonstrated. The influence of infiltrating wetting fronts on gas phase transport of volatile organic compounds is shown to be significant. The long-term fate of a subsurface spill of a three-component dense organic liquid is simulated. Three-dimensional simulations of soil vacuum extraction demonstrate the difficulty in removing dissolved organic compounds from the saturated zone with this process. ¿ American Geophysical Union 1993