The use of plants to extract toxic metals from soil and water is being developed as an alternative method for remediation of metal contaminated soil, groundwater and drinking water. This talk will discuss current progress in three fields of phytoremediation: phytoextraction, phytofiltration and phytostabilization. Phytoremediation has been used to remove lead and uranium from contaminated soil and water, to extract arsenic from drinking water, and to stabilize mining tailings of US Superfund sites. Current results indicate that phytoremediation may provide an environmentally sound alternative for the clean up of certain metal contaminated soil and water.