The strain of S-47 degrading 4-chlorobenzoic acid (4CBA) was isolated from Ulsan chemical industrial complex by enrichment cultivation with 1 mM 4CBA. The strain was Gram-negative rod and grew optimally at 30.deg.C and pH 7 under aerobic condition, so that the organism was identified as a species of Pseudomonas. Pseudomonas sp. S-47 degraded 4-chlorobenzoic acid to produce a yellow-colored meta-cleavage product, which was confirmed to be 5-chloro-2-hydroxymuconic semialdehyde (5C-2HMS) by UV-visible spectrophotometry. 5C-3HMS was proved trometry. This means that Pseudomonas sp. S-47 degraded 4CBA via 4-chlorocatechol to 5C-2HMS by meta-cleavage reaction and then to 5C-2HMA by 5C-2HMS dehydrogenase.