Identify and eject these noxious offenders and replace them with safer alternatives.

RODALE NEWS, EMMAUS, PA—Spring is in the air, but that doesn’t mean nasty chemicals have to be, too. This season's colossal home cleaning campaigns and daunting do-it-yourself projects can be done without poisoning the air or tainting your local water supply. Most of our safer alternatives will even save you money, too—and with Earth Day on the way, now's a perfect time to make the switch.

Here are five chemical culprits to kick out of your house—and the nontoxic options that should move in instead.

1. Coal-tar driveway sealant. If you plan to seal your blacktop driveway this spring, avoid coal-tar based sealants. They contain polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, or PAHs, which studies suggest can be carcinogenic, toxic, and mutagenic. When rainwater and other precipitation hit your driveway, the toxic chemicals run off into your yard and into your local drinking water supply. In fact, this situation has been compared to dumping quarts of motor oil right down a storm drain.