Eastern Experts - featuring The Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (CEFAS) Information and Library Services

CEFAS was established as an executive agency of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAFF) in April 1997. It provides research and consultancy services in fisheries science and management, aquaculture, fish health and hygiene, environmental impact assessment, and environmental quality assessment.

There are three CEFAS laboratories, based at Lowestoft, Burnham and Weymouth, all with extensive library facilities. The Lowestoft laboratory library is the largest of the three libraries. it has recently relocated to a purpose built central location and has off site archive storage facilities. The combined collection has been built up over many decades with early publications dating from the 1900's. Current periodical subscriptions number around a thousand with old journal runs numbering around 200. The CEFAS library catalogue has in excess of 1 00 thousand records, many of these are bibliographic references to reports and grey literature held by the libraries. Around 25 thousand textbooks, reprints and translations make up an extensive collection. The library at Lowestoft holds the United Kingdom's most comprehensive collection of material published by the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES). This material is a valuable source of current and historic data on fisheries and shellfish research.

Access to databases such as Current Contents, Aquatic Sciences and Fisheries Abstracts (ASFA) and Analytical Abstracts is available from the libraries and at the user desktop. CEFAS is moving towards desktop lnternet access, but until it becomes available libraries are some of the few areas where the lnternet is available for CEFAS staff.

All three of the libraries have taken on new responsibilities over the last few years and now find that the workload has broadened following developments in information technology. The methods for management, storage and retrieval of information have changed considerably, with the most significant change being the implementation of a wide area networked library system, CAIRS Total Library. The library at Lowestoft also has additional responsibility for records management (this is another area where computerisation is being considered) and lntranet development and indexing. With desktop lnternet access just around the corner we are considering the delivery of information to our customers, reviewing on-line access to journals and other information sources.

We are also getting involved in the intellectual property side of things, assisting with patent searches and looking at long-term storage and cataloguing of archive material.

The library is primarily for use by CEFAS staff, but is available for reference to other research workers and bona fide enquirers by prior appointment. We will deal with external enquiries free of charge, however a charge is made for any material that is photocopied. We also lend to other libraries, but may require a British Library account number to do so, if you are not a member of ANGLES or another government library.

The CEFAS web site can be found at www.cefas.co.uk and our Email address is lowlibrary@cefas.couk

Sarah Carter
Library Manager

(Spring 2001 Easterner)