Evaluating the Condition of Slavic Collections: Simple Steps to Identify If a Collection Is at Risk.

The paper examines options and procedures for evaluating the physical conditions of Slavic and East Central European publications in libraries. The study concentrates on paper quality, since a large percentage of all materials published in East Central Europe and the countries of the former Soviet Union are at risk since they were printed on acidic paper. The author outlines preservation issues and provides basic instructions for evaluating collections. Such evaluations provide essential information necessary if a library is to develop an organized preservation plan for its collections. The paper outlines a simple program developed at the University of Kansas Libraries to evaluate the degree of risk in collections. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]