Soil contamination with pentachlorophenol (PCP) is widespread across the globe. Soil washing/extraction is a common technique to remove this compound. Several soil washing/extraction solutions have been used but a majority of them have the problem of persistence in the environment due to their low biodegradability. Our aim was to investigate mixed solutions of lactic acid and water as potential alternatives to surfactant solutions or organic solvent systems used for the removal of PCP from three soils: montmorillonite, a natural sediment (with organic matter), and the same sediment without organic matter (ignited sediment). This study included the optimization of the concentration of lactic acid in water for maximum extraction efficiency and the determination of linear desorption constants for removal of PCP from the three soils with lactic acid. The effect of soil/sediment organic matter on the extraction efficiency was also studied. Initial experiments showed that 24 h was the optimum extraction time. High extraction efficiencies were obtained for montmorillonite (40-80%) and ignited sediment (similar to 90%). The natural sediment exhibited low PCP extraction due to presence of organic matter, while high desorption coefficient values (similar to 23 L/kg) were obtained for the ignited sediment. For all soils, a decrease in extraction was observed at higher concentrations of lactic acid. The specific surface area of soil/sediment was also found to be an important factor affecting the extraction of PCP. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.