Geology

Collection Development Policy

Paul Piper, Librarian

1. Applicable LC Classes:

Call No.	Subject Heading
QE 1-350	Geology (General), Techniques, Regional Geology, Histories
QE 351-399.2	Mineralogy
QE 420-499	Petrology
QE 500-639.5	Dynamic and Structural Geology, Geochemistry, Volcanoes and Earthquakes
QE 640-699	Stratigraphy
QE 701-996.5	Paleontology, Paleozoology,l Paleobotany

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2. Academic Departments, Programs, etc.:

Geology, some overlap into Biology, Environmental Science and the College of Business and Economics (petroleum exploration).

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3. Collection Levels:

Call No.	Subject Heading	Present	Desired
QE 1-350	Geology (General), Techniques, Regional Geology, Histories	3	3b
QE 351-399.2	Mineralogy	2b	3b
QE 420-499	Petrology	2b	3b
QE 500-639.5	Dynamic and Structural Geology, Geochemistry, Volcanoes and Earthquakes	3	3b
QE 640-699	Stratigraphy	2b	3b
QE 701-996.5	Paleontology, Paleozoology,l Paleobotany	3	3b

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4. Scope:

	Present	Desired
Geographic:	West coast, American West, Canada	Nore international
Language:	Primarily English	More diversity
Chronological limitations:	The collection is growing dramatically older due to the lack of funding

5. Formats collected/Non-Subject Parameters:

Books, Conference Proceedings, Government Documents, Journals, a large collection (around 200) of U.S. Geological Survey CD-Roms, 22 videos.

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6. System Coordination and Resource Sharing:

Many additional materials are available via Summit and WorldCat.

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7. Electronic Databases:

GeoRef, and to some extent Oceanic Abstracts and ProQuest

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8. Notable Features:
An extensive collection of U.S. Geological Survey Bulletins and Professional Papers, and Geological Survey of Canada publications.

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9. Narrative Statement:

Over the past few years, over 90% of the Geology acquisitions formula was spent on journals (there are currently 68 titles). The collection of books and non-book/non-journal material has been severely impacted by this departmental choice, and the result is a book (video, etc.) collection that is aging rapidly. The collection would be truly gutted if it were not for the various government publications we receive, including: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletins, U.S. Geological Survey Professional Papers,l Washington State documents, and materials from the Geological Survey of Canada, most of which we receive free of charge. The collection contains nearly 200 U.S. Geological Survey CD-Roms. There are also a substantial number of conference proceedings.

The overall quality of the collection is spotty, containing some gems such as Elsevier's Handbook of Stratabound and Strataform Ore Deposits (although now almost 25 years old) to almost juvenile books on rocks and minerals. This range of materials, from advanced research to basic introductory, makes the collection difficult to evaluate. But regardless of the advanced nature of many of the titles, the majority of them are at least ten years old.

The Reference collection has several new encyclopedias including the Encyclopedia of Geology, Encyclopedia of Sediments and Sedimentary Rocks, and the McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Geology and Mineralogy, but there have been only 10 additions to the Reference collection in Geology since 1999. The collection does contain a large number of field guides, particularly Washington State and regional. These are well-used and valuable for the professional, as well as amateur use.

The Geology matwerials are primarily in English (only 362 out of 10,295 are non-English), and the primary Geographical focus is the Pacific Northwest, Western United States, and to a lesser extent the United States and Canada. This scope should be expanded both nationally and internationally.

The database GeoRef is the premier database in the field of Geology. ProQuest adds some electronic journal articles that were previously unavailable. The efficiency of ILLiad interlibrary loan greatly enhances the delivery of articles we do not own.