Map Collection - Weeding Policy

To manage the Map Collection effectively, it is sometimes necessary to withdraw from the collection materials that are surplus to the teaching and research requirements of the University. This process is often known as ‘weeding’. This policy briefly sets out the types of materials in the Map Collection that may be considered for weeding.

Materials selected for weeding will normally fall into one of three categories:

1) Exact Duplicates
Duplicate materials will be weeded by Map Collection staff as a matter of course.

Occasionally some duplicates may be retained, particularly of high use materials or materials of particular significance to Melbourne, Victoria or Australia. For example, a duplicate set of Australian 1 inch to 1 mile maps is held in the collection as this series is of particular historic significance and a valuable source of map information about Australia in the first half of the 20th Century.

2) Material Providing Duplicate Information
Where material duplicates the information provided by other material, this material may be considered for weeding by Map Collection staff.

This does not mean that a map of Chicago will be weeded simply because another map of Chicago is held. However, if both maps are road maps of Chicago, provide similar information, and were published within a year or two of each other, then one may be considered for weeding. Another example is Australian Census Collection District maps. If both hard copy and microfiche version were held, the hard copy may be assessed for weeding.

3) Material Outside the Collection Policy
Where material falls outside the scope of the Collection Policy, this material may be considered for weeding by Map Collection staff. In such case, academic(s) from department(s) concerned with the area and/or subject of the map, and the Map Collection Users’ Group, will be consulted as to whether the material should be retained or discarded.

Substantially incomplete series (sets) of maps, and maps that are much more detailed than specified in the collection policy, may fall into this category and be considered for weeding. For example, the collection aims to provide geological map coverage of at 1:250,000 scale for Western Europe. If an incomplete and much more detailed (say 1:50 000 scale) geological series of France was held, this material may be considered for weeding in consultation with academic(s) from the Earth Sciences department.

The final decision to weed or retain any materials will be made by Library staff.

Materials which have been weeded may be given to other libraries, sold, or discarded. At present the CARM cooperative store does not accept maps.

John Cain
Map Curator
16 June 1999

e:\maps\collect\weed99.doc