Environmental Health Home Assessment: Whats in my home?

I believe I've done my best to be mindful of environmental health and safety issues in my living space. Unfortunately, as is the case with many Bay Area residents living in the peninsula, being a tenant gives us very little information about the history of the spaces we live in. In going through the assessment shared below, I noticed that I marked N/A for multiple responses realizing that I didn't know the answer. However, as a result of an environmental health course that I took in undergrad, there are multiple changes that I've made to my lifestyle to limit exposures. Some include, switching to a fully vegetarian and organic diet, choosing safer cleaning products, and safer detergents and deodorants, being mindful of BPA in the materials I purchase, limiting my use of perfume (fragrance), eliminating nail polish use, using pesticides that are 100% organic and natural, and much more.  Although there are still some adjustments I can make, I believe I have a good start. 

• In the home assessment, why did we want to know about the age of your home? I believe the general idea behind wanting to know the age of the home has to do with exposure to lead paint. In 1978 lead paint was banned from interior use in homes. I did some research and discovered that the home I rent was built in 1943, suggesting the use of lead paint in the home. I'm not sure if layering paint can decrease exposure, but upon moving in I repainted everything with zero VOC paint. 

• Why would we want to know if someone lives in the basement? Luckily the home I rent does not have a basement, but I have visited spaces where people reside in the basement. Basements tend to to expose individuals to multiple environmental health hazards, including: moisture and mold, radon, and  carbon monoxide from combustion appliances that are normally found in these spaces, such as a furnace. 

• Who is responsible for home-based environmental health risks? As individuals who reside in these spaces, I believe we can do our best to exercise our power to prevent as much exposure as possible. However, landlords/homeowners carry a large responsibility and can request support from local health departments if/when needed. However, landlords tend to focus most on their best interest, making it challenging for tenants to request support. Many times, because of factors such as SES, individuals will rent spaces without having the luxury of worrying about the hazards they are exposing themselves to. I believe it's a multi-layered issue that goes beyond placing one individual as the sole person who is responsible.