Porous silicon nanowires are synthesized by metal assisted wet-chemical etching of highly-doped silicon wafers. The resulting porous silicon nanowires exhibit a large surface area of 337 m² g⁻¹ and a wide spectrum absorption across the entire ultraviolet, visible and near infrared regime. We further demonstrate that platinum nanoparticles can be loaded onto the surface of the porous silicon nanowires with controlled density. These combined advancements make the porous silicon nanowires an interesting material for photocatalytic applications. We show that the porous silicon nanowires and platinum nanoparticle loaded porous silicon nanowires can be used as effective photocatalysts for photocatalytic degradation of organic dyes and toxic pollutants under visible irradiation, and thus are of significant interest for organic waste treatment and environmental remediation.