Online Resources Threaten Livelihood Of Libraries

摘要

The closure of five of the 26 Regional Libraries of the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) last year sparked international protest. Congressional hearings were held, and a government investigation was launched. In February this year, the President of the American Library Association told Congress that the closures have restricted access to information in at least 31 States. The EPA is not alone-last year, the Department of Energy closed its headquarters library in Washington DC. And now, NASA is considering downsizing its network of libraries - including the one at its leading Science-research Centre, the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. Tight budgets could bring even more whittling of libraries in the United States."When budgets are threatened, agencies tend to say let's put the library on the chopping block, says Tara Olivero, Assistant Director at the American Library Association in Washington, DC.