Media Contact:
Steven Morris, NCSU Libraries, 919/515-1361

Sept. 30, 2004

NCSU Libraries, Library of Congress Work to Preserve At-Risk Data

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The Library of Congress and the North Carolina State University Libraries entered into a cooperative agreement to complete a $1.044 million project through the National Digital Information Infrastructure and Preservation Program on Sept. 30, 2004. The Library of Congress is contributing approximately half the total amount of the project. The NCSU Libraries is partnering with the North Carolina Center for Geographic Information and Analysis on a three-year project to collect and preserve at-risk digital geospatial data resources from state and local government agencies. Although the effort will focus solely on North Carolina, it is expected to serve as a demonstration project for other states.

The geospatial resources targeted by the NCSU Libraries’ project include digitized maps, geographic information systems (GIS) data sets, and remote sensing data resources such as digital aerial photography. A wide range of state and local agencies create these forms of data for use in tax assessment, transportation planning, hazard analysis, health planning, political redistricting, homeland security and utilities management.

State and local agencies frequently offer more detailed and up-to-date geospatial data than federal agencies. However, these entities are by definition decentralized, and their dissemination practices focus almost exclusively on providing access to the most current data available, rather than any older versions. In 2003 the North Carolina Geographic Information Coordinating Council launched a plan to “organize the geographic information assets statewide” under a program called NC OneMap. One of the stated goals of NC OneMap is to ensure continuous access to historic and temporal data.

The NCSU Libraries and the North Carolina Center for Geographic Information and Analysis will identify available resources through the NC OneMap data inventory and acquire at-risk geospatial data. The project partners will develop a digital repository architecture for geospatial data through use of open source software tools such as DSpace and emerging metadata standards such as Metadata Encoding and Transmission Standard (METS). In addition, the partners will investigate methods for automating the identification and capture of data resources by using emerging Open Geospatial Consortium specifications for data interoperability. One outcome of the North Carolina project will be the development of a model for data archiving and time series development that can guide and inform digital preservation efforts in other states and countries.

In 2001, NCSU Libraries received an International Special Achievement award from the Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI) recognizing its accomplishments in advancing GIS technology. NCSU Libraries began offering geospatial data services in the mid-1990s and was an early leader in collecting data from North Carolina’s local governments. Data resources continue to be acquired, cataloged, and made available in the library and through a campuswide networked server, and are used by every academic college at NC State. Other services offered include assistance with finding and using data resources, providing access to public workstations, and training. For more information, click here.

The Library of Congress is the largest library in the world. Through its National Digital Library (NDL) Program, it is also one of the leading providers of noncommercial intellectual content on the Internet. See here for more information. The NDL Program’s flagship American Memory project, in collaboration with other institutions nationwide, makes freely available more than 8.5 million American historical items. In December 2000, Congress authorized the Library of Congress to develop and execute a congressionally approved plan for a National Digital Information Infrastructure and Preservation Program. A $99.8 million congressional appropriation was made to establish the program. The goal is to build a network throughout the country of committed partners working through a preservation architecture with defined roles and responsibilities. The complete text of the “Plan for the National Digital Information Infrastructure and Preservation Program” is available here. This includes an explanation of how the plan was developed, who the Library worked with to develop the plan and the key components of the digital preservation infrastructure. The plan was approved by Congress in December 2002.

The NCSU Libraries, with more than 3.2 million volumes, over 51,000 print and electronic serials, and hundreds of databases, offers leading-edge resources and services from its central library, the D.H. Hill Library, and four branch libraries. For full information about the NCSU Libraries, visit here.

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