The proper disposal of solid waste is considered a challenge to many Brazilian municipalities that still dispose of their waste in controlled landfills and dumps, major causes of environmental liabilities. As the soil is one of the environmental components most affected by this practice, the objective of this work is to evaluate the vegetative development of sunflower and jack bean cultivated in soil with environmental liability arising from inadequate disposal of solid waste. Soil samples were collected from a deactivated dump located in the west of São Paulo and a control sample, in order to compare the development of species in different soils. The study was carried out in a greenhouse, from the Design of Randomized Blocks, with sixteen experimental plots, during 45 days. Soil fertility parameters and biomass production of the species were evaluated. The results were submitted to analysis of variance and the Tukey mean comparison test. There was a significant influence of solid waste on the availability of nutrients in the soil, which showed high levels of macronutrients and organic matter. The pig bean species stood out for its higher biomass production compared to sunflower, which indicates the possibility of using this species in the phytoremediation of this environmentally passive soil.