This subject sometimes is difficult for and archive or library to actually apply on a day to day basis. In recent years there has been a heightened awareness of the importance of preservation. There has been a steady increase in libraries and archives that use archival quality materials for storage. Still it can be difficult to determine if one's preservation plan is adequate or lacking in some important area.
Archival preservation falls within the scope of conservation but excludes restoration.
The purpose of preservation is the protecting of the object from itself and external influences. Due to the laws of nature, preservation is always a compromise. The compromise archival mangers or librarians make is usually a balance between cost and protection. Significant money for preservation is usually not available to libraries and archives. The purpose of this paper is to examine five practical, hopefully low cost, ways that archives and libraries can minimize deterioration of their most rare and valuable holdings without incurring significant expense.