Solid waste management represents a serious problem involving aspects of remediation technologies and the wastes generated in industrial activities deserve more attention because of the nature and the amount of the pollutants, often difficult to be eliminated. Preliminary research was carried out on the application of electrokinetic treatment to remove petroleum from carbonaceous soil by using Ti/Ru_0.34Ti_0.66O₂ and graphite electrodes. Experiments were carried out on a laboratory scale, in a 132 × 50 × 50 mm cell, using 50 g of soil for each test and currents between 0.01 and 0.1 A. As a general result, modest abatement of organic matter was achieved, with relatively low energy consumption.