Prior to the 1920's, very few people were aware of the term or concept "biosphere", and prior to the 1960's minimal people knew the term "environment". Beginning around the 1930's, literature concerning this topic began to appear. Up until this time Americans thought of the natural world as being a storehouse of raw materials intended for human economic purposes. In the late 60's, Americans began to recognize an emerging crisis. They had seen firsthand serious environmental destruction. They lived near polluted lakes where it was too gross to swim or fish. They lived in grimy, air-polluted cities. They witnessed DDT killing wildlife. They were eating pesticide-ridden foods. People suddenly became aware of the environment. They realized that it isn't indestructible or invincible, and that humans were having a negative affect on the environment. This awareness sparked a concern among some Americans and thus began the conservation movement. The conservation movement sought to ensure "wise use" of the latent wealth of nature.
             In 1965 the Conservation Foundation held a conference on Future Environments of North America. As a result of this conference many concerned authors published literature outlining the proceedings. These writings contributed to a heightened public awareness of an endangered environment. They began to bring political concerns to the public eye. Environmental pollution became a huge public health concern.
             Of course the conservationists did have many critics. At first it was considered just another "special interest" group similar to groups supporting women, seniors, gay men and lesbians, ethnic groups and cultures lobbying for attention. They faced huge critics in the developing stages. "Hard" scientists and engineers such as oil geologists, industrial chemists, etc. argued "humanity's ingenuity and perseverance woul...