Government Documents on Geology

Government Documents Index

Purdue University Libraries have numerous government documents on geology. Purdue is a selective depository for U.S. Government documents and most documents on geology are located in the Earth & Atmospheric Sciences (EAS) Library with some being located in the HSSE Library too. Subject headings you can use to search for government documents on geology in the Library Catalog include:

Geology--United States
Geology--Indiana
Geology, stratigraphic
Speleology
Plate Tectonics
Seismology
Coal--Geology
Petroleum--Geology

A number of federal agencies produce geology-related publications. One can do a corporate author searches for them in THOR by typing a= and the following entries:

Geological Survey U.S.
United States Bureau of Reclamation
United States Bureau of Land Management

The principal index for finding U.S. Government publications is the Monthly Catalog of U.S. Government Publications HSSE REF & Periodicals 016.353 Un36. This resources is also available online from 1994-present. This database can also be searched in the GPO Index on the Purdue Libraries website.

The following is a list of some of the many useful government publications on geology. Most are produced by the U.S. Geological Survey which is a branch of the U.S. Dept. of the Interior and most are located in the EAS Library.

United States Geological Survey Yearbook (also in microfiche (MF)	EAS 557.3 UN31 & I 19.1/2:
U.S. Geological Survey General Publications	EAS I 19.2:
U.S. Geological Survey Bulletins (Results of geological studies)	EAS 557.3 Un31b & EAS MF I 19.3:
U.S. Geological Survey Circulars (Reports on geological studies)	EAS 557.3 Un31c
Water Supply Papers (Water resources research reports)	EAS 557.3 Un31w
Publications of the U.S. Geological Survey	EAS 016.5573 Un3p
Professional Papers (Formal reports of USGS studies)	EAS 557.3 Un31p & EAS MF I 19.16:
National Water Conditions	EAS 557.3 Un31wr & EAS MF I 19.42:
Water Resources Investigations (Informal water resources studies & reports)	EAS 628.1605 Un3w & EAS MF I 19.42/4:
Water Resources Data for Indiana	LIFE 553.7809773 Un3w & LIFE MF I 19.53/2:
Earthquakes & Volcanoes	EAS 551.2205 Ea76 & EAS MF I 19.65:
Open-File Reports	EAS MF & LIFE I 19.76:
7.5' Topographic Maps (States)	EAS I 19.81:
1:50,000 Topographic Maps (States)	EAS I 19.81/2:
U.S. Geological Survey Digital Data Series (CD-ROM)	EAS I 19.121:
Minerals Yearbook (Also available on National Trade Data Bank (NTDB) CD-ROM in MGMT and on the Internet at http://minerals.usgs.gov/minerals/pubs/myb.htmll	EAS, MGMT, & HIKS Repository 557.3 Un31ma
Soil Surveys (Surveys of soils in individual counties done by the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation Service and its predecessor the Soil Conservation Service.)	LIFE 630.8784 Un7

U.S. Coast & Geodetic Survey Annual Reports 1852-1892 (Historically valuable annual reports submitted to Congress)

Congressional Publications

Congressional publications can contain significant geological information. Publications on geology are produced by congressional committees which have jurisdiction and funding responsibility over the U.S. Geological Survey and congressional support agencies such as the General Accounting Office. Most congressional publications are in the HSSE Library. Examples of congressional publications include:

House Appropriations Committee (Rep. Peter Visclosky (D-IN) is a member of this committee.)	HSSE MF Y 4.AP 6/1:IN 8/6/
Senate Appropriations Committee (Appropriations committees are excellent sources for project expenditure information.)	HSSE MF Y 4.AP 6/2:
House Natural Resources Committee	HSSE DOC Y 4.R 31/3:
Senate Energy & Natural Resources Comm.	HSSE DOC Y 4.EN 2
Government Accountability Office Reports	MGMT MF GA 1.13:

Congressional Serial Set (Online: Purdue Users Only) HSSE Repository Y 1.1/2:

Congressional Research Service Reports (Courtesy-University of North Texas Library)

Internet Resources

Increasing volumes of government information are accessible on the Internet. A locally accessible index of Internet government information resources is: www.lib.purdue.edu/govdocs/

GPO Accessprovides links to various federal, legal, legislative, and regulatory information such as the U.S. Code, Federal Register, and congressional bills.

Other U.S. Government Internet geological information sources include:

LexisNexis Statistical (Purdue Users Only)

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)

Bureau of Land Management

Bureau of Reclamation

National Atlas of the United States

USGS Geological Information

Historical USGS Maps of New England & New York (Courtesy-University of New Hampshire Library)

USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service

USGS Digital Orthophotoquad Photos

New York State Gazetteer and Geodata Collection (Courtesy-SUNY Buffalo Library)

Selected State Government Sites