[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 182 (Wednesday, September 20, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Page 54986]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 06-7803]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-8221-3]


Notification of Closure of the EPA Headquarters Library

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The EPA Headquarters Library will close its doors to walk-in 
patrons and visitors on October 1, 2006. This notice provides 
information regarding how members of the public can access EPA 
documents held in the Headquarters Repository Library collection and in 
electronic format.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jeff Tumarkin, Mailcode 2843T, Office 
of Environmental Information, Information Access Division, 
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., 
Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: (202) 566-0681; e-mail address: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The trend in recent years has shown a shift 
in the ways that people request and receive library services from EPA. 
With more material available online and electronically, EPA has found 
that its employees and the public are finding the materials they need 
from EPA's web site and they are requesting more information 
electronically. In addition, with tighter security at Federal 
facilities, the public's physical visits to the EPA Headquarters 
Library have been declining. These trends, in addition to reductions in 
the library's FY07 budget, suggested to EPA that it needed to use 
information technology to improve its delivery of library services to 
EPA and public patrons. Library services for EPA staff and the public 
will be maintained as detailed in the new EPA Library Network National 
Framework which is available online at http://www.epa.gov/natlibra/.
    Beginning October 1, 2006, the EPA Headquarters Library, located in 
Room 3340 in the EPA West Building, located at 1301 Constitution Ave., 
NW., Washington, DC, will become one of three EPA repositories for 
paper copies of EPA documents, reports and publications. The other two 
repositories will be located at the EPA-RTP Library, 109 T.W. Alexander 
Drive, Durham, NC 27711, and at the Andrew W. Breidenbach Environmental 
Research Center, 26 W. Martin Luther King Dr., Cincinnati, OH 45268. 
Public access to EPA's valuable documents collections continues to be a 
critical mission of the EPA Libraries. Thousands of EPA documents and 
reports can be accessed in full-text electronic format through the 
National Environmental Publications Information System (NEPIS) at 
http://nepis.epa.gov/. Members of the public can also search for EPA 
documents in the libraries' catalog at http://www.epa.gov/natlibra/ols.htm. Once items of interest are identified, they can be borrowed 
via interlibrary loan thru participating institutions. The public will 
continue to have access to environmental information thru the EPA 
Regional Libraries remaining open http://www.epa.gov/natlibra/libraries.htm.
    The answers to many questions about EPA and its activities can be 
found in the Agency's Frequently Asked Questions database which can 
searched online at http://publicaccess.custhelp.com/. Additionally, the 
public will continue to have access to comprehensive environmental 
information via the EPA Web site at http://www.epa.gov.

    Dated: September 13, 2006.
Linda A. Travers,
Acting Assistant Administrator and Chief Information Officer, Office of 
Environmental Information.
[FR Doc. 06-7803 Filed 9-19-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P