United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Information Resources
Management
(3404)
SERA INFO ACCESS
EPA 220-N-95-004
Issue Number 49
January 1995
HIGHLIGHTING
SPECIAL COLLECTIONS IN THE NETWORK
by Jonda Byrd, IMSD, Manager, National Library Network Program
Throughout the EPA Library Network,
there are libraries that have unique
collections of information resources
focusing on specific environmental
topics. There are also special libraries
whose entire collections center on a
specific subject such as toxic
substances in the Office of Pollution
Prevention and Toxics (OPPT) Library,
the meteorological aspects of air
pollution in the Atmospheric Sciences
Modeling (ASMD) Library, and
environmental and administrative law
in the Law Library. These special
collections vary in size, content, and
format, but they have a few elements in
common. First, they are developed and
maintained to meet a specific need for
their primary clients. Second, they
expand the resources of the network by
supporting all of our more general
collections in these subject areas.
Third, they can be accessed through a
central focal point, the Network's
Online Library System.
In the next two issues of INFO
ACCESS we provide profiles for
several EPA Libraries and their special
collections. In this issue you will find
profiles of the Law, Legislative,
ASMD, and OPPT libraries. As a
complement to these profiles we
include an article about new network
special collections developed in
response to agency, regional, or
program initiatives. This issue also
contains an article contributed by the
staff of the Cincinnati library reflecting
on the development of special
collections and describing some of the
collections they maintain. At the end of
the issue we include a directory of
some of the network librarians who
currently maintain and continue to
develop special collections of
environmental information.
The March issue of INFO ACCESS
will contain profiles of the National
Enforcement Investigations Center
Library, and some of the agency's
information resource centers that
function as our partners in the public
access effort. It will also include a
report from SLA's conference on
managing information technology. We
encourage all of the network libraries
to share information about their
projects and accomplishments with
their colleagues through the newsletter.
The EPA Library Network is a
valuable resource to the Agency as
well as to the public. Our combined
Highlightiing continued on page 13
3 DAYS ONLY
IN THIS ISSUE
PAGES 2-4
A PROFILE OF EPA's LAW LIBRARY
PAGE 3
REGION 2 LIBRARY CLOSED DUE TO MOVE
PAGE 4
LOOKING AHEAD TO MARCH
PAGES
A PROFILE OF EPA's LEGISLATIVE LIBRARY
PAGE 6
REFLECTIONS ON SPECIAL COLLECTIONS
PAGE?
Toxics "R" Us: EPA's OFFICE OF
POLLUTION PREVENTION AND Toxics LIBRARY
PAGE?
OPPT NEWSBREAK: Toxic NEWS FOR THE NET
PAGE 8
A PREVIEW OF FUTURE INFO ACCESS ARTICLES
PAGES 9
A PROFILE OF THE ATMOSPHERIC SCIENCES
MODELING DIVISION LIBRARY IN RTP, NC
PAGE 10
GATEWAYS TO INFORMATION
PAGES 10-11
AROUND THE NETWORK
PAGE 11
ACCESS EPA #3
PAGE 12
LANWORKS: MAXIMIZING INFORMATION
SERVICES IN REGION 4
PAGE 13
REGION 9's
ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE COLLECTION
PAGE 13
WELCOME TO THE NETWORK!
PAGE 14
NEW NETWORK SPECIAL COLLECTIONS
PAGE 15
LIBRARY NETWORK DIRECTORY OF ,
SPECIAL LIBRARIANS—JANUARY 1995
Printed on Recycled Paper
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INFO ACCESS • JANUARY 1995
A PROFILE OF EPA's LAW LIBRARY
by Barbara Morrison, Office of General Counsel (OGC)
Environmental law received a lot of
attention during the 1980s, and with
increasing interest in environmental
protection, will probably continue to
generate interest through the turn of the
century. EPA's Law Library was
established in the mid 1970s by the
Office of General Counsel (OGC) to
meet its information needs and those of
the Agency's enforcement staff. In
1981 the Library relocated to its
present location under the supervision
of Barbara Pedrini Morrison, the
Agency's Law Librarian. Within one
year the Library's floor space was
increased 40% with a corresponding
growth in its collection. Currently
Barbara maintains the main Law
Library along with two satellite
libraries established to support OGC
staff at Waterside Mall and at OGC's
new site in Rosslyn, Virginia.
In the Fall of 1993, the Office of
General Counsel relocated 40 attorneys
to offices in Rosslyn. The Office asked
Barbara to establish an adjunct library
to serve the attorneys at the new site.
She worked with the architects to
design the library and select the
shelves, furniture, and equipment for
the new library. Legal reference
material previously maintained in a
"satellite library" adjacent to OGC's
fifth floor offices at Waterside Mall
was moved into the new library in
Rosslyn. Looseleaf titles and legal
reference volumes were added to this
separate collection, and a new laser jet
printer was obtained for the LEXIS
terminal. The fifth floor "satellite
library" was replenished with selected
older materials from the main Law
Library at Waterside Mall.
CLIENTS, SERVICES AND RESOURCES
The staff in the Office of General
Counsel are the Library's primary
clientele, although legal information
services are also provided to EPA
enforcement personnel, the
Administrative Law Judges, the
Environmental Appeals Board,
attorney-advisers in the programs, and
Regional Office staff. In addition the
Law Library serves as a national
resource for State and local
governments, private law firms, and
educational institutions, providing
reference and access to primary source
materials in environmental law.
For clients located in the
Washington area, the Library provides
on-site access to legal and law-related
material concentrating on Federal law,
with special emphasis on
administrative and environmental law.
Database searches are conducted for
EPA attorneys, attorney-advisers, and
judges. These requesters generally
INFO ACCESS
require information such as citations
for court decisions, the full-text of
judicial opinions, law review articles,
treaties, and related legal information.
Barbara Morrison consults a variety of
online sources to locate requested
information, but primarily uses LEXIS.
THE COLLECTION
The Library's collection contains
statutes, codes, regulations, case
reporters, digests, citators, looseleaf
services, newspapers, legal reference
sources, and 75 current law reviews
and periodicals. In 1990 the Office of
General Counsel established a new
division, the International Law
Division. OGC contributed funds to the
library to acquire materials containing
information on international law to
support the staff in this new division.
In 1994, the Law Library added CD-
ROM capabilities. Users can now
access Personnel, a product featuring
information on labor and employment
law, the Federal Register, Code of
Federal Regulations, and BNA's
Environment Reporter.
INFO ACCESS, a forum to provide information and report on progress in
information management across the Agency, is produced by the Information
Access Branch (IAB) of the Information Management and Services
Division (IMSD), Washington, D.C., under the direction of Jonda Byrd,
National Library Network Program Manager. Please send comments and
suggestions to: Mary Hoffman (contractor), Network Coordinator,
1521 East Franklin Street, B300, Chapel Hill, NC 27514. Telephone:
(919) 968-3849. Electronic mail: Hoffman.Mary.
D
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INFO ACCESS • JANUARY 1995
The Law Library has a significant
collection of historical information
including a complete set of the EPA
General Counsel Opinions, Statutes at
Large dating from 1931 to the present,
U.S. Congressional and Administrative
News from 1946 to the present, and
Title 40 of the Code of Federal
Regulations from 1972 to the present.
Microfiche holdings include the
Congressional Record (1969 to the
present), the Federal Register (1970 to
the present), legislative histories of
laws relevant to EPA's mission, and
selected CFR titles from inception to
the present, including those with
information on Administrative
Personnel; Food and Drugs;
Navigation and Navigable Waters;
Protection of the Environment; Public
Contracts and Property Management;
Public Health; and the Federal
Acquisitions Regulation (FAR)
System.
OUTREACH TO OGC
AND EPA STAFF ...
The Law Library uses the OGC LAN
to promote its services and resources to
OGC staff. Barbara produces an
electronic information newsletter called
"Information Insights from the Law
Library," that provides updates on
online databases, new sources in the
library, and news items. As part of her
services for EPA staff, Barbara
circulates journal table of contents to
OGC and Office of Enforcement and
Compliance Assurance staff members.
... AND TO THE NETWORK
Barbara actively supports resource
sharing in the EPA Library Network.
She supports the network librarians by
helping them evaluate their collections
of legal sources and responding to a
wide range of questions about legal
issues. This year she was able to visit
EPA libraries in Denver and Seattle,
and talk to the librarians about their
collections and services. One of her
many contributions is a standing offer
to visit the Library of Congress Gifts &
Exchange Division for Regional and
laboratory librarians to obtain copies of
legal and other reference volumes for
them. She often obtains recent editions
REGION 2 LIBRARY CLOSED DUE TO MOVE
Due to their new facility move, and
the large-scale reorganization which
includes barcoding and security
tagging, the Region 2 Library will
be closed from January 17, 1995-
March 1,1995. The actual move will
take place on February 6, 1995, and
they will inform the Network of
their new phones, fax number, exact
mailing address, etc. prior to that
date. All ILL materials should be
returned BEFORE the 17th of
January; however, they will make
every effort to assist Network Libraries
with all types of requests wherever
possible during the entire move period.
They anticipate being
"incommunicado" only for the few
days actually surrounding the move on
the 6th of February. As they are
designating themselves and "non-
suppliers" with OCLC, please PHONE
or E-MAIL either Eveline or a member
of her staff for assistance. Do not FAX
of key reference titles, a valuable favor
in these days of limited funding.
Barbara also generously shares
copies of superseded volumes from the
Law Library, including titles such as
the Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory,
duplicate copies of EPA reports, and
extra copies of the Code of Federal
Regulations. She also sends old copies
of the EPA COMC at microfiche to the
Regions so they can share them with
State and local contacts.
IMPROVING ACCESS
TO LEGAL INFORMATION
Barbara has been working with local
law librarians and with information
producers to provide access to EPA
legal information. The Library
contributes information on its
periodical holdings to a local union list,
COUNSEL, which provides access to
the periodical holdings of 166 law
libraries in the Washington, DC area,
and represents a unique resource for
interlibrary loan.
Profile of Law Library continued on page 4
as their fax will no longer be
operative after the 17th.
HAPPY NEW YEAR TO EVERYONE!
Eveline Goodman (contractor),
Head Librarian
Barbara Stewart (contractor),
Librarian
Nancy O'Brien (contractor),
Library Technician
Irene Rouse (contractor),
Library Technician
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INFO ACCESS
JANUARY 1995
Profile of Law Library from pages 2-3
Barbara works with the producers of
LEXIS and WESTLAW to ensure that
all significant sources of environmental
information are available online. She
also serves on the Bureau of National
Affairs' Environmental Indexing
Advisory Board. Barbara negotiated
the provision of EPA documents to
Mead Data Central, Inc., the producers
of LEXIS, for their online
"Environmental Library." She
continues to work closely with Mead to
enhance existing online environmental
files and make additional files
available. Over the past few years she
has helped Mead obtain Federal
Register notices, Federal court
decisions, legislative histories, and
OGC opinions. In 1994 she
participated in a project to load the
complete legislative history of the
Clean Air Act amendments of 1990
into LEXIS. She also helped LEXIS
(and WESTLAW) obtain copies of
decisions by EPA's Environmental
Appeals Board, which was established
in 1992. [NOTE: Recently LEXIS has
expanded its collection of law reviews
online, adding the Columbia Journal of
Environmental Law, Harvard
Environmental Law Review, Pace
Environmental Law Review, Stanford
Environmental Law Journal, Villanova
Environmental Law Journal and
Virginia Environmental Law Journal.}
In addition, Barbara has worked with
the producers of WESTLAW to provide
access to EPA documents such as
legislative histories and OGC
decisions. The WESTLA W database has
the complete set of EPA's General
Counsel Opinions online; Barbara
provided them with hardcopy of back
decisions to complete the set.
Barbara's contributions to resource
sharing extend beyond her work with
the database producers. Through a
contact at West Publishing she is able
to distribute free copies of Selected
Environmental Law Statutes to EPA's
international visitors and contacts in
other countries including China,
Hungary, and Poland.
Barbara is an active member of the
Law Librarians Society of Washington
D.C. (LLSDC). She served on a
volunteer task force that compiled a
directory of all library and information
facilities in the Washington D.C.
metropolitan area. She also participates
in the regular update of COUNSEL, the
regional law library union list of
serials, and the Union List of Legal
Looseleafs. In September 1994,
Barbara received LLSDC's "Unsung
Hero" Award, in recognition of her
service to the library community above
and beyond the call of duty.
LOCATION AND HOURS
The Law Library, located in Room
2902M, is open Monday through
Friday, from 8:30 am until 5 pm. A
photocopy machine and a microfiche
reader/printer are available for patron
use. Photocopying of copyrighted
materials by the public is not allowed.
If you have questions about legal
information resources or the Law
Library, can contact Barbara at (202)
260-5919, or through electronic mail at
Library-Law. •
LOOKING AHEAD TO MARCH
MANAGING INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY:
A REPORT FROM SLA's WINTER EDUCATION CONFERENCE
The March issue of INFO ACCESS will feature a summary report from
SLA's Winter Education Conference held in Raleigh, North Carolina on
January 29-31, 1995. The conference was designed to respond to special
librarians' concerns and issues relating to information technology. The
keynote speaker, D. Kaye Gapen, is the Director of Research Services at the
Morino Institute in Virginia. Her presentation will focus on understanding
the role of the special librarian as we move toward the year 2000, and how
the special librarian can create positive social change through the power of
information and electronic communications.
The report from the conference will also feature summaries of sessions
on using available technology to improve services and productivity,
communicating with users in the changing technology environment, and
using new technologies to recreate information services.
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INFO ACCESS • JANUARY 1995
A PROFILE OF EPA's LEGISLATIVE LIBRARY
by Joan Flatten, Office of Congressional and Legislative Affairs
EPA's Legislative Library is located in
the Office of Congressional and
Legislative Affairs (OCLA), an arm of
the EPA Administrator's Office. The
Office is responsible for coordinating
the Agency's relationship with
Congress by setting up meetings
between Agency staff and Congress,
covering hearing appearances by the
Agency, OMB and White House
clearance of testimony by Agency
staff, control of congressional
correspondence, and requests for
information relating to environmental
legislation.
LIBRARY SERVICES
The Legislative Library is located on
the second floor of Waterside Mall
near the Headquarters and Law
Libraries at the EPA Headquarters
facility. Included in the library space is
the Hearing Transcript Unit, which
coordinates the editing of
Congressional hearing transcripts. The
hearing transcript becomes public
record when it is released by the
appropriate Congressional Committee
and is printed by GPO.
EPA employees are the primary
clients of the Legislative Library,
however, the library offers limited
assistance to the public. Pamela
Abraham, the Legislative Reference
Specialist who operates the Library,
provides a wide range of services to
those who are seeking legislative
information, including:
• Compilation and electronic
distribution of daily abstracts from
the Congressional Record each day
Congress is in session.
• Collection and maintenance of the
full range of Congressional
documents, including reference
materials and periodicals.
• Development of lists and reports on
the status of pending legislation.
• Preparation of legislative histories.
• Tracking the status of current
legislation.
LEGI-SLATE - AN ONLINE
LEGISLATIVE RESOURCE
The Legislative Library tracks the
status of environment, appropriation,
and personnel legislation before
Congress with Legi-Slate, a powerful
database that enables the library to
access up-to-the-minute information on
legislation. The Library compiles lists
and reports on the status of bills
pending before the current and past
Congresses, The information is
organized by subject, bill number,
sponsor, committee, and is available
upon request. The Legi-Slate database
is not available for library patron use.
IN THE COLLECTION
The Library collection includes a
variety of legislative and Congressional
resources, including Congressional
hearings, House and Senate reports,
legislative histories, bills from the
House and Senate, and environmental
law summaries and reports from the
Congressional Research Service. Most
of these documents are provided for
EPA staff only. However, we can
identify documents and inform the
public how to obtain most of these
documents. The Library's periodical
collection includes the BNA Reports,
Congressional Quarterly, National
Journal, Federal Yellow Book,
Congressional Yellow Book, and other
titles containing legislative information
and news.
The Library has a good collection of
legislative reference titles dating back
to the beginning of EPA, including the
Council on Environmental Quality
annual reports, Congressional Staff
directories, telephone directories, and
other historical documents relating to
the activities of Congress.
REPORTS TO CONGRESS
The Library keeps track of the
clearance of EPA reports to Congress
and maintains a file that dates back to
1975 of reports that have been
mandated by EPA legislation, except
those tied to appropriations legislation.
The Library does not keep copies of
these reports, but can tell you if a
report was done and who you can call
for more information. This clearance
process has recently undergone a
streamlining process.
ACCESS TO THE LIBRARY
The Legislative Library is open
Monday through Friday between 9 am
and 4 pm, and is located in Room 2439
at Waterside Mall. EPA employees are
encouraged to call for assistance in
identifying and obtaining copies of
legislation and other Congressional
documents and reports. You can
contact Pamela Abraham at
(202) 260-5425. •
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INFO ACCESS • JANUARY 1995
REFLECTIONS ON SPECIAL COLLECTIONS
The AWBERC Library in Cincinnati
maintains a number of specialized
collections containing some of its most
current materials and some of the most
outdated. Why these collections are
started, what purpose they serve, and
their eventual disposition present some
interesting points to think about,
especially in light of automated library
catalogs.
Special Collections, or subsets of the
library's collection, are usually created
for two reasons:
One, items related to a particular
subject or purpose are brought together
when interest is thought to be high
enough to generate demand for the
material. This special collection
essentially makes access to the
materials easier for the users and
library staff. The Reference collection,
EPA reports, and legal material
collections can be considered special
purpose collections with an ongoing
need to be segregated from the general
collection. AWBERC maintains a
special subject collection of computer
books, including an Internet sub-
collection. Another special collection
of AIDS books has been recently
created to coincide with AIDS
Awareness in the government. These
special subject collections will be
reincorporated into the general
collection as interest in their topics
wanes or the books become dated.
Two, materials that are part of a
series may be set aside from the
collection in order to distinguish them
from the general book or journal
collection. This is typically done to
save space in the stacks, or if the
materials are physically different from
the rest of the collection. A set of
encyclopedias in a special stand or an
oversize collection are examples. At
AWBERC, another example is the
collection of Standard Test Methods.
These documents are too flimsy to
stand on their own in the book stacks
and their purpose is unique enough to
warrant special collection status.
Do we need special collections in
libraries today given the automated
catalog's capabilities? An automated
catalog allows the user to create virtual
special collections of materials on
demand. For example, AWBERC
maintains a special collection of risk
assessment materials, primarily books
and reports. The books are cataloged
under several different LC
classification numbers, therefore,
would not normally be all together on
the shelves. Through OLS, the user
should be able to reconstruct this
collection with a well-structured search
statement. The fact that these materials
are part of a special collection in the
library should be noted on the OLS
record. This allowed the library staff or
the user to recreate the exact collection
on paper if necessary.
In theory, automated catalogs should
do a better job at creating virtual
special collections than the library
could physically. An automated system
allows the integration of materials such
as books, reports, and journal articles,
plus references to items not necessarily
owned by the library. Today's users are
much more sophisticated in the ways of
information technology to believe that
a single collection would be
exhaustive. But what about the issue of
locating materials. What's the best way
to explain to a patron with a list of
references that some of these materials
are in the stacks, a few others are in
this special collection, and the others in
that special collection. Neither of these
scenarios reflects favorably on
collection management.
In summary, special collections that
are created for a specific purpose
should be returned to the general
collection when the need for that
collection is past. Items that are
physically different or cannot be
integrated easily into the stacks are
destined to special "collectionhood" for
as long as they are maintained by the
library.
MORE DETAILS ON SPECIAL
COLLECTIONS IN THE AWBERC
LIBRARY
RISK ASSESSMENT COLLECTION
The Jerry F. Stara Risk Assessment
Collection was dedicated in June 1988.
The scope and intent of the collection
is to support the three components of
risk assessment: hazard identification,
dose response assessment, and
exposure assessment. The collection of
books and reports primarily addresses
risk assessment modeling,
carcinogenesis, mutagenesis and
toxicology.
LEGAL COLLECTION
The legal collection provides access to
information on current U.S.
Government regulations. The
collection includes the U.S. Code, the
Code of Federal Regulations, the U.S.
Code Service Lawyer's Edition, and
Reflections continued on page 13
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INFO ACCESS
JANUARY 1995
TOXICS "R" Us:
EPA's OFFICE OF POLLUTION PREVENTION AND Toxics LIBRARY
If you are looking for information
about those cute endangered pandas or
how to save beautiful, mysterious
wetlands, you've come to the wrong
place; instead, if it's nasty, yucky, or
just generally suspected to make some
lifeform sick—welcome to the Toxics
Library! A less colorful way to put it is
that the OPPT Library maintains and
develops a collection of scientific
literature relating to the health and
environmental effects of chemicals. In
conjunction with the collection, we
also provide information access
services such as an electronic current
awareness service (OPPT
Newsbreak—see sidebar), interlibrary
loan and document delivery, online
database searching, publishing and
manuscript support services, Internet
demos, and traditional ready reference.
Physically, the OPPT Library
(formerly known as the Office of Toxic
Substances Chemical Library, a.k.a.
TSCA Library) is located in the
basement of the Northeast Mall (Room
B606) at EPA Headquarters in
Washington, D.C. We are open to EPA
and the public Monday through Friday,
Sam to 4:30 pm, as is the reference
desk [(202) 260-3944, FAX 4659,
Internet: library-tsca@epamail.epa.
gov]. The library is contractor staffed
by LABAT-ANDERSON,
Incorporated.
Organizationally, the library is under
the Information Services Section,
Information Access Branch,
Information Management Division,
Office of Pollution Prevention and
Toxics, all of which are under the
Assistant Administrator for Prevention,
Pesticides and Toxic Substances.
While the OPPT Library is part of the
EPA Library Network, in some ways
we are more akin to an academic
departmental library. We provide
extensive, cost-incurring research
assistance (e.g. online searches) only to
the specific offices that provide
financial support (we keep track of
who gets service by their mail code). In
addition, the Toxic Release Inventory
User Support (TRI-US) customer
service line (202) 260-1531) is
answered by reference desk staff, who
refer TRI searches and extensive
information requests to the TRI-US
Librarian. The TRI-US service
provides free TRI searches to the
public and supports the TRI CD-ROM
and other TRI information products
(the online TRI database on TOXNET
is supported by NLM.)
THE COLLECTION
The Library maintains a collection of
some 4,000 books, 60 current journals,
a microfiche collection of almost
140,000 scientific and technical journal
Toxics "R" Us continued on page 8
OPPT NEWSBREAK: Toxic NEWS FOR THE NET
One of OPPT Library's most successful information products is the
electronic current awareness service we call "OPPT Newsbreak." Each
morning, staff scan five newspapers: The Washington Post, The
Washington Times, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and the
Washington edition of The Los Angeles Times. Newspapers are
supplemented with journal articles and government reports; we plan to
increase our journal coverage this year. Although we have been accused of
being the "all smoking newsbreak," we really do try and focus on items
relating to environmental health, environmental policy, computers and the
information superhighway (we prefer "infobahn"), and federal employment
issues. The most fun part is keeping an eye out for "Inter Alia"—items too
weird or wonderful not to share!
We used to distribute Newsbreak via ALL-IN-ONE, but have converted
to a listserve in order to accommodate our Internet readers. To subscribe,
send an E-mail to the EPA listserver at listserver@unixmail.rtpnc.epa.gov
with the message subscribe OPPT-NEWSBREAK Firstname Lastname in
the body of the message. OPPT Newsbreak is a one-way distribution list-
there is no ability for subscribers to post messages for each other.
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INFO ACCESS
JANUARY 1995
•Toxics "R" Us from page 7
articles (Chemical Collection, no
longer current), 15,000 technical
reports on microfiche (includes
TSCATS), 6,000 paper government
documents (unfortunately only 62%
are cataloged), and five national
newspapers (listed in sidebar). Some
of these items are unique to the OPPT
Library collection and are not held by
any other library in the EPA Library
Network. (Please note, however, that
we no longer support the Pesticides
programs, and our newer acquisitions
reflect this change in orientation. All
of our pesticide journals and many
books were transferred to the
Headquarters Library several years
ago.) For example, our extensive
Toxicological Profiles collection
contains ATSDR's Toxicological
Profiles; NTP's Technical Report
Series; the United Kingdom's
Department of the Environment,
Toxic Substances Division reports;
the World Health Organization's
Environmental Health Criteria series;
the European Centre for
Ecotoxicology and Toxicology of
Chemicals (ECOTOC) Technical
Report series; and the German
Chemical Society's GDCh-Advisory
Committee on Existing Chemicals of
Environmental Relevance BUA
reports. We are also building a
collection of relevant GAO and DOE
reports, and we have some NIOSH
documents.
Besides our main reference and
monograph collections, we have
several formal "Special Collections"
covering: the Toxic Substances
Control Act (EJER TSCA); the
"Jjbrarianship is in our blood,"
so give the O(P(d*T JjJbrary a call
when a particularly poisonous
problem comes your way.
Emergency Planning and Community
Right-to-Know Act (EJER EPCRA)
that houses our Toxic Release
Inventory related documents including
hard-to-find state TRI studies, as well
as environmental justice/community
reports; Risk Assessment (EJER Risk)
focuses on policy issues; Pollution
Prevention (EJER Poll) (please contact
the Pollution Prevention Information
Center first as they have a larger
collection); the Total Quality
Management Resource Center (EJEM
Res.Ctr.) collection of management
books, reinventing government reports,
some women in science books, and the
continuing education/college catalog
collection; and the small public policy
oriented Biotechnology collection
(EJER Biotech).
STAFFING
Presently we have four librarians and
one paraprofessional serving on the
Reference Desk; in addition, we have
two people cataloging, and a staff
support specialist. Despite our narrow
subject scope, we spend much of our
time answering a wide variety of
inquiries from an assortment of
patrons. We will provide ready
reference to anyone (if only to give a
referral), and often find ourselves being
a frustrated citizen's last resort. We
scurry to fill information requests for
EPA staff responding to time-sensitive
Pre-Manufacturing Notices, introduce
people to the wonders (and horrors) of
Internet, provide background materials
to speechwriters, offer research support
to the EPA Breast Cancer Information
Sharing workgroup, develop and send
out surveys pleading "please answer
and you too may win a mug!," and
scrape mold off of books (long story—
you don't want to know). Its always
interesting, and to paraphrase one of
my staff "librarianship is in our blood,"
so give the OPPT Library a call when a
particularly poisonous problem comes
your way. •
A PREVIEW OF FUTURE INFO ACCESS ARTICLES
A profile of the National Enforcement Investigations Center (NEIC)
Library in Denver.
One of our network librarians describes her recent experience creating a
library for the Indonesian Environmental Ministry.
A profile and description of services provided by the Office of Water
Resource Center at Headquarters.
ERL-Narragansett's librarian shares information about their changing
mission.
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INFO ACCESS • JANUARY 1995
A PROFILE OF THE ATMOSPHERIC SCIENCES MODELING
DIVISION LIBRARY IN RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, NC
by Evelyn M. Poole-Kober, Atmospheric Research and Exposure Assessment Laboratory
The Atmospheric Sciences Modeling
Division (ASMD) Library is part of
two library networks: the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (US
EPA) and US Department of
Commerce, National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
Formerly known as the Meteorology
Library, the ASMD Library originated
in 1958 at the Robert S. Taft Sanitary
Engineering Center in Cincinnati, OH.
In 1971 the Library became part of the
US EPA at Research Triangle Park
(RTF), NC, and NOAA at Silver
Spring, MD, when the U.S. EPA and
NOAA were created by
Reorganization Plans Nos. 3 and 4 of
1970.
Organizationally, the Library is part
of the ASMD Office of Director (i.e.,
it is not listed as a library in the US
EPA, RTP, NC, telephone directory),
with one staff member offering a range
of services. Technically, the ASMD
Library's main function is to serve the
NOAA Division assigned to support
the US EPA's Atmospheric Research
and Exposure Assessment Laboratory
(AREAL). Realistically, the Library
functions as the US EPA AREAL
Library, serving the US EPA
Environmental Research Center
(ERG), RTP, and the US EPA and
NOAA nationwide.
The Library services to EPA and
NOAA include in-house literature
searches, interlibrary loan transactions,
walk-in and telephone reference
support, cataloging, acquisitions of
new and renewal journal subscriptions,
books, equipment, and other essential
materials to enhance the library's
collection. The AWBERC Library in
Cincinnati provides funds for the
Library's access to OCLC for
cataloging. Interlibrary loan requests
are handled by ALA forms and E-mail
with backup support from the ERC
"Thejtftmospheric Sciences
Modeling Division Jjbrary is
unique in that it is included in
both the Environmental
tprotection^gency and the
^National Oceanic and
^ftmospheric^ldministration
library networks."
ACCESS EPA 1993
Library and the NOAA Central and
Boulder Libraries.
The Library is open to on-site
contractors and the Triangle area
environmental research community,
which includes three major universities:
the University of North Carolina at
Chapel Hill; North Carolina State
University in Raleigh; and Duke
University in Durham. University
students use the Library because the
universities have contracts and
cooperative agreements with EPA.
The Library's collection focuses on
air pollution meteorology, chemistry,
numerical and physical model
development and application, climate
change analysis, and geophysics. The
Library houses a core air pollution
reference collection, including
handbooks, scientific and unabridged
dictionaries, major air pollution
studies, atlases, almanacs, and
topographic maps. The main collection
contains books, journals, public
documents (domestic and
international), microfiche and
microfilm, and dissertations and theses.
The Library's equipment includes a
microfiche/microfilm reader/printer
and a PC workstations, including a
CD-ROM reader. The CD-ROM
collection includes Meteorological
Geoastrophysical Abstracts', the U.S.
Code; Toxic Release Inventory; EPA
and NOAA's CD-ROMs; and PC
Magazine. Patrons can search EPA's
Online Library System and NOAA's
catalog by using the modem. Staff uses
the NOAA LINC on CD-ROM.
Having made four moves since 1982,
now the library is in enviable space,
with a half-circle of windows
surrounding the reading and reference
area. Centrally located among the
several US EPA leased offices in the
Park, the Library is across Interstate 40
from the ERC Library and next door to
US EPA Administration Office
Building.
If you would like to talk to Evelyn
about atmospheric science sources, or
the ASMD Library, contact her at
(919) 541-4536, or send her an E-mail
at ASMD-AREAL. •
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INFO ACCESS
JANUARY 1995
WOULD YOU RATHER BE
ROADKILL
OR A
ROAD WARRIOR
ON THE INFORMATION
SUPERHIGHWAY?
ITS YOUR CHOICE!
Plan to attend
GATEWAYS TO INFORMATION
on April 3-5, 1995 in Denver,
Colorado, a library meeting
sponsored by the U.S.
Environmental Protection
Agency, National Biological
Survey, National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration,
and the U.S. Geological Survey.
Look for the agenda and more
details in the coming weeks.
AROUND THE NETWORK
This section of INFO A CCESS is used to report on projects currently
underway or recently completed in the Regions, Laboratories, and
Headquarters libraries. Contact Mary Hoffman (contractor) Library
Network Coordinator at (919) 968-3849 or at E-mail box
Hoffman. Mary if you would like to contribute an item.
PA HEA'b,QUARTiRSltlBRARY'tO^;52"l^iUlONI^|LL'R'i^fcs|^ •:*•,-."" -"•''-")•
At 11:30 am on June 24, 1994, the EPA Headquarters Library gained national
attention by logging the 52 millionth Online Computer Library Center (OCLC)
interlibrary loan request. The request was for the book, Reengineering the
Corporation: A Manifesto for Business Revolution, by Michael Hammer. This
request was made a mere 60 days after the 51 millionth request was logged.
OCLC is a nonprofit computer library service and research organization whose
computer network and services link more than 18,000 libraries in 52 countries
and territories. An OCLC spokesperson told us that it took two years to reach the
one million request mark, and that now more than a million requests are logged
every two months. These figures illustrate how very valuable and popular
interlibrary loan service is to library users. The EPA Headquarters Library, which
provides interlibrary loan service exclusively for EPA personnel, initiates about
250 borrowing requests and responds to nearly 400 lending requests each month.
Most of the 28 EPA libraries around the nation actively lend and borrow materials
with other network libraries, as well as with non-EPA libraries in their area. —
from The Catalyst, October/November 1994, EPA Headquarters Library
MAXIMIZING RETRIEVAL, MINIMIZING SHELF SPACE IN ADA
Cynthia Bruno (contractor) and Dale Pflaum, the Delivery Order Processing
Officer and Systems Administrator, are both new to RSKERL Library
responsibilities. They are working cooperatively with RSKERL's Library
Committee to evaluate the collection plan for the long term and implement a
strategy to "maximize retrieval and minimize shelf space." Consideration is being
given to networked access, electronic retrieval and document delivery, and
Internet access to information. A complete, physical inventory has been
undertaken, and monograph, serial and extensive document weeding have taken
place in the process. RSKERL researchers have been polled for subject areas of
personal interest, and document delivery established accordingly. Eleven EPA
personnel have recently elected to take the ORD buyout, and new research
interests of the Lab that result from personnel changes will be a consideration in
any future collection development. If you are interested in talking to Cynthia
about this project, you can contact her at (405) 436-8505.
TRIrUS PART OF EPA's CUSTOMER SERVICE INITIATIVE
The Toxic Release Inventory User Service (TRI-US) was selected by EPA to
be part of the Agency's Customer Service Initiative. The Head OPPT Librarian
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INFO ACCESS
JANUARY 1995
AROUND THE NETWORK (CONTINUED)
attended workgroup meetings to participate in planning a strategy to evaluate the
service. Library staff provided the workgroup with an overview of
"benchmarking" as used in total quality management, and a list of organizations
to be used as examples. In addition they assembled a narrative and workflow
chart of how the TRI-US responds to patron requests; a list of places the TRI-US
is listed and advertised; and a TRILOG usage report to select individuals for
focus groups. If you would like to know more about TRI-US and this effort,
contact Michelle Cavanaugh (contractor), TRI Librarian at (202) 260-0568 or
Linda Poore (contractor), Head Librarian, OPPT Library at (202) 260-9774.
CD-ROM HOTLINE IN THE REGION 4 LIBRARY
The Library set up a CD-ROM Hotline to address CD-ROM Service technical
issues and minimize disruptions in the use of CD-ROM resources. EPA personnel
use the new hotline to notify library staff about problems with CD-ROM access;
library staff have received 15 calls since the hotline was established in November.
When they receive a hotline call, the library staff immediately inform the
appropriate personnel to correct the problem. One of the Reference Librarians
made the necessary arrangements to obtain a separate phone number for the
service, and developed an announcement for the "Daily News" section of the
Regional LAN. Contact Priscilla Pride (contractor), in the Region 4 Library, for
more details about the hotline.
RETROSPECTIVE CONVERSION IN LAS VEGAS
The EMSL Library staff are currently in the process of a mini-retrospective
conversion project. The purpose of the project is to make sure that all EMSL/LV
documents are included in the LIBPUB database, that is the Library's OPAC
(online public access catalog). If you would like to know more about this ongoing
project, call Rose Ellis (contractor), at (702) 798-2648.
NEW TEAMMATES IN REGION 5
The retired Regional Librarian, Lou Tilley, has been replaced by a Library
Manager, Patricia Krause. Patti, always a good library user, has been working on
the Region's Hotline. This experience makes her a rich resource for contacts and
gives her an understanding of the nature of demands that can be placed on a
public service like a library.
The contract staff has been reorganized. We added a Librarian, Pat Magierski
(contractor), was an intern at Northwestern University's library and worked in
technical services at the University of Chicago's law library. Pat's main job is
interlibrary loan, and she will be helping with reference and cataloging.
We also have a new Libary Aide, Dakia Jones (contractor). A graduate of
Howard University, Dakia has experience working in a legal government library.
She will answer our main phone line, do circulation and process the journals. She
will also do filing, mail processing, and photocopying.
Reflections from page 6
the U.S. Code Congressional &
Administrative News. The Environment
Reporter, a looseleaf service is also
available to provide up-to-date
regulatory information.
HAZARDOUS WASTE COLLECTION
The Hazardous Waste Collection is a
special collection designed to better
meet the needs of EPA and Library
staff by making key documents and
services more readily available through
the EPA Library network. The
collection consists of EPA reports,
OSWER Directives, and other
hazardous waste-related materials.
Aside from these major special
collections, the library also maintains
smaller groups of specialized
information source covering:
• Standard Test Methods (EPA/
AWWA/ASTM approved methods)
• Management (Principles &
practices, TQM, organizational
strategy, communications, etc.)
• Computer Materials (Mainframe &
PC, hardware and software
manuals, networking, & Internet) •
ACCESS EPA #3
ACCESS EPA Online is a hit with
the public according to figures on
usage compiled by the National
Data Processing Division. The file
was accessed 1,255 times in
October, and showed increased
use in November and December.
ACCESS EPA on the gopher
server was accessed 2,005 times,
and ranked third on the list of the
top ten data retrieval areas on the
gopher.
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INFO ACCESS • JANUARY 1995
LANWORKS: MAXIMIZING INFORMATION SERVICES IN REGION 4
PART I: DEVELOPING LAN
INFORMATION SERVICES
Selecting and disseminating
information via regional LANS is
expanding the role of the information
professional throughout the Agency.
This is the first in a three-part series of
articles on how EPA libraries use LAN
technology to burst electronically
through traditional walls and
innovatively enhance information
services for EPA personnel.
What do you do with a LAN?
Obviously, LANs are set up for
telecommunications purposes. Every
day we send and receive messages to
our colleagues from our desktops via
cc:mail and ALL-in-1 electronic mail.
LANs provide the opportunity for
libraries to provide information
services in new and exciting ways and
support telecommunications
capabilities. Jack Sweeney, 1MB
Branch Chief in Region 4 assembled a
team of EPA and contract personnel to
work on enhancing information
services provided on the LAN,
including the following:
• Organizing the information
currently on the LAN
• Selecting new electronic products
• Creating a LAN Pathfinder to guide
users to these resources
The Region 4 Library organized the
titles in its book and document
collection into six broad categories to
facilitate access through the LAN:
AdministrativeYManagement; Legal\
Regulatory; ChemicalYToxicological;
GeologicVHydrological,
BusinessXCompany Intelligence and
General\Scientific\Technical. The LAN
team used these categories in the LAN
Pathfinder to help users find
information. The team also surveyed
and received input from personnel in
the program offices. The LAN
Pathfinder (F6) from the MAIN LAN
MENU appears on the screen like this:
INFORMATION RESOURCES MENU
Administrative / Management
Air Programs
Business / Facility / Residential
Chemical / Toxicological / Pesticides
Computer & Information Security
Information Center
General / Scientific / Technical
Geographic / Cross Media
Legal / Regulatory
Waste Programs
Water Programs
Alphabetized Index of Resources
More About Pathfinder
New Information Resources
Highlight desired resource above
using and hit
Press to return to the LAN
Menu
Fl=Help Enter ^Select Home =
Top of File ESC=Exit F10=Search
Once the categories were tailored to
match program office needs, the team
began to assemble information in the
form of CD-ROMS, disks and
databases to fit each category. For
example, each category has submenus
of fulltext or information references.
The Administrative/Management
submenu provides access to the
Employee Handbook, GSA Regulations
and Publications on CD ROM,
telephone directories, news ("Daily,"
"Environnews," "Greenwire," etc.), the
Official Airline Guide and the Self
Learning Center catalog. From the
Chemical/Toxicological/Pesticides
menu clients can access IRIS, Medline,
MSDS, Pestbank and ROLS (Register
of Lists) databases.
Enhancements to the LAN made
electronic resources easier to locate.
For example, the user has the option of
accessing information sources directly
from the LAN Pathfinder Menu rather
than going back to the Main LAN
Menu. Next users will be able to access
an alphabetized index to resources and
get an update on what's new on the
LAN. To make the LAN Pathfinder
visually appealing an EPA Logo
appears on the first screen.
The library supports development of
the LAN's information resources by
using the following methods to select
new products for the LAN:
• Collecting free databases from
various program offices and the
Internet
• Purchasing government and
commercial electronic products
• Collecting in-house databases
generated from various projects
To further ensure that EPA staff are
aware of resources on the LAN, the
library prepared a brochure entitled,
"Take a LAN Tour: Your Guide to the
LAN Information Pathfinder on
the LAN Main Menu." In addition,
regular basic end user training is
offered to EPA personnel. The library
provides training primarily on CD-
ROM databases such as the 40 CFR,
Federal Register, Environmental
Library, and SearchMagic, the
library's LAN Catalog that users
access from their desk. Training on
accessing Internet Listservs is also
provided.
Lanworks continued on page 13
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INFO ACCESS
JANUARY 1995
REGION 9's
ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE COLLECTION
WELCOME
TO THE NETWORK!
"Environmental Justice" and
"Environmental Equity" are terms
that have increasingly come into
usage over the past few years.
They refer to the contention, held
by many within the field, that
minority and low-income
communities bear a
disproportionate burden
of the nation's pollution
problems in terms of their
exposure to environmental
hazards.
Region 9 has been involved in this
issue since June of 1992. At that time,
an Environmental Equity Quality
Action Team (QAT) was created under
then Regional Administrator Dan
McGovern's direction; the team's
mission was to define and begin work
on regional environmental issues.
In July of 1993, Lori Lewis became
Region 9's first Environmental Justice
Coordinator. One of her efforts has
been to establish a central repository
for materials related to this subject
area. To help achieve that goal, the
Region 9 Library is currently in the
process of compiling a vertical file of
Highlighting from page 1
collection of information provides
comprehensive coverage of
environmental information sources and
comprises a tremendous source of
knowledge. Our libraries are
committed to support the seven
principles at the core of EPA's five-
year strategic plan through a myriad of
newspaper clippings, journal articles,
and other documents on the topic of
environmental equity. At this point,
these articles are indexed by number
and source, and we plan to cross-index
them by subject, title, and date. The
Library staff has developed an index of
22 subcategories to provide better
organization and access for this
material.
The Environmental Justice File is
located at the back of the library, near
the journals reading area. We
encourage anyone interested to come
take a look!—from the November 1994
issue of Library Line. •
changes that will shape EPA's agenda
into the next century. Our expertise in
the development of special collections
relevant to the agency's priorities will
form a solid base for sound science and
decision making at EPA during this
time. •
Join us in welcoming these new
network librarians:
• Pat Magierski (contractor),
works with Penny Boyle
(contractor) in the Region 5
Library.
• Lois Ramponi (contractor), is
the new manager of the Office
of Water Resource Center at
Headquarters.
• Barbara Stewart
(contractor), works with
Eveline Goodman
(contractor) in the Region 2
Library.
• Joanne Tobin (contractor),
oversees library and records
management staff in
Region 4.
Lanworks from page 12
As the technology changes and new
resources become available,
information professionals in the Region
and throughout the Agency will
continue to develop new ways to
manage technology and information.
Their efforts will continue to improve
access to the data needed by EPA
personnel to administer programs and
support the agency's mission. •
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INFO ACCESS • JANUARY 1995
NEW NETWORK SPECIAL COLLECTIONS
Most of the EPA network libraries have established special
collections on topics of special interest to EPA and the Region. The
following paragraphs describe several new collections developed
recently by library staff working in conjunction with EPA staff.
HIV/AIDS SPECIAL COLLECTION
ESTABLISHED AT THE HQ LIBRARY
On September 30, 1993, President
Clinton issued an executive
memorandum to all Federal Agencies
and Departments mandating that
Federal employees attend HIV/AIDS
education and prevention training. In
response to this mandate and the need
to address this public health crisis,
EPA has developed a training program
that is being delivered in all EPA
locations. The training provides basic
information on HIV/AIDS, modes of
transmission, prevention, and testing as
well as an overview of the rights of all
disabled employees.
Recognizing that everyone learns in
a variety of ways, the HQ Library has
established a special collection of
materials on HIV/AIDS. These
materials include brochures from local
and national AIDS service
organization, reference books, articles
and videotapes for those who wish
additional information after attending
training. Please look for this special
collection near the Employee
Assistance Collection (first aisle, 5th
range on the right) in the Headquarters
Library.
BOSTON HARBOR COLLECTION
ESTABLISHED IN REGION 1
Library staff are currently working
with EPA staff from the Regional
Marine and Estuary Protection Section
and the Wetlands/Water Quality
Branch to establish a Boston Harbor
Clean-Up Project Collection in the
Regional Library. The collection of
materials includes historical
environmental impact statements and a
wide range of supporting documents.
The collection will help the library and
Regional staff respond to frequent
requests for information about the
Boston Harbor.
REGION 4's NEW SELF LEARNING
CENTER
When part of the staff from the Record
Center next to the library moved to
another part of the building in Region
4, the Office of Personnel Management
(OPM) quickly grabbed space in the
library to open the Self Learning
Center (SLC). The SLC contains over
three hundred videos, cassettes, and
books which supports the professional
growth and development of EPA
Regional staff. The collection consists
of materials designed to help users plan
effective meetings, solve problems,
improve management skills, write
effective performance appraisals, and
develop customer service and quality
assurance programs.
The Center contains four carrels, two
video recorders, a cassette player and
an interactive video system. This
enables users to read, view or listen to
materials in the SLC or check the
materials out for use at home. Also
located in the center is the Wellncss
Center's videos on exercise, diet, and
health subjects. Library staff catalog,
process and circulate SLC materials
which are purchased by OPM. Head
phones for the VCRs and cassette
player can be checked out at the
Reference/Circulation Desk in the
Regional Library. Since the SLC
opened in May 1994, additional
materials have been added to the center
and loan records show that over 300
items have been borrowed.
APTI COLLECTION AT THE REGION 4
LIBRARY
The Region 4 Library now houses the
Air, Pesticides, and Toxics
Management Collection of more than
three hundred videos and workbooks
provided by the Air Pollution Training
Institute (APTI). The APTI located in
Research Triangle Park, North
Carolina provides a comprehensive
curriculum for the air pollution control
community and offers courses via
classroom, telecourses and self-study.
Course materials are updated by
nationally recognized experts in such
subject areas as monitoring,
measurement and control of air
pollution. The self-study course housed
in the library offers students an
opportunity to explore additional
subject areas at their own pace. The
course materials circulate to EPA
personnel and to state, local and federal
air pollution control professionals. •
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INFO ACCESS • JANUARY 1995
LIBRARY NETWORK DIRECTORY OF SPECIAL LIBRARIANS—JANUARY 1995
* = Contractor
Library/Librarian E-Mail
Region 1— Research Library for Solid Waste
Fred Fr iedman*
Region 3— Hazardous Waste Technical
Information Center
Dawn Shellenberger*
Region 4— Office of Regional Counsel Library
Patricia Strougal*
RTP— Atmospheric Sciences Modeling Division Library
Evelyn Poole-Kober
Cincinnati— ECAO/Technical Information
Unit & Risk Info. Hotline
Alfred Valvano*
Region 8— National Enforcement Investigations
Center Library
Dorothy Biggs
Region 9— Pollution Prevention Resource Center
Karen Sundheim*
Region 10— Office of Regional Counsel Library
Ann Klofas-Hinger*
HQ\Environmental Financing Information Network
llsabe Urban*
HQMNFOTERRA/USA:
Beth Behrendt*
HQ\Law Library:
Barbara Morrison
HQ\ Legislative Library:
Pamela Abraham
HQ\Office of Pollution Prevention & Toxics Library
Linda Poore*
HQXOffice of Water-HQ Library:
Kim Moriarty*
HQ \Pollution Prevention Information Clearinghouse
Rowena Griem*
HQ\Superfund Information Center-HQ Library:
Fabienne McGovern*
HQ\ Toxic Release Inventory User Support-OPPT Library
Michelle Cavanaugh*
Library-Reg 1
Shellenberger.Dawn
Strougal. Patricia
ASMD-AREAL
Valvano.AI
Biggs. Dorothy
Sundheim. Karen
Klofas-Hinger.Ann
Urban. llsabe
Behrendt. Elizabeth
Library-Law
Platten.Joan
Poore. Linda
Moriarty. Kimberly
Griem. Rowena
McGovern. Fabienne
Cavanaugh. Michelle
Phone
(617)573-9687
(215)597-6633
(404) 347-2335
(919)541-4536
(513)569-7300
(303) 236-51 70
(415)744-1508
(206) 553-2436
(202) 260-0420
(202) 260-5927
(202)260-5919
(202) 260-5425
(202) 260-9774
(202) 260-8670
(202)260-1758
(202) 260-5934
(202) 260-0568
Fax
(617)573-9662
(215)597-9890
(404) 347-5246
n/a
(513)569-7159
(303)236-3218
(415)744-1474
(206) 553-8509
(202)260-0710
(202)260-5153
(202) 260-8866
(202) 260-8866
(202) 260-4659
(202)260-5153
(202)260-5153
(202)260-5153
(202) 260-4659
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