Phytoremediation, the use of plants and associated microorganisms to eliminate environmental damage or threats posed by environmental pollution, never managed to live up to its expectations, because of long-term restrictions in land use. The recently developed phytomanagement bypasses this drawback by incorporating the aspect of economic revenue production into phytoremediation. Phytomanagement regards contaminated soils not as a problem but as an economic opportunity and a valuable resource that should be used sustainably. The product variety ranges from timber and pulp, over fodder and fertilizers up to pharmaceuticals. Phytomanagement could thus not only offer ecological benefits but offer also economic relief to communities that live near contaminated sites. Plant research could assist in achieving that goal by identifying new marketable plant species, by developing new crop management schemes (e.g. intercropping) and by developing new transgenic plants.