Materials are acquired in a variety of formats depending on their availability and suitability. The New York State Library has a strong collection in geology. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute also has some resources. The New York State Geological Survey has a small library with strengths in USGS Technical Reports and Open File Reports. For geology, very little material is acquired through the approval plans.
Research is supported in large part by a relatively strong collection of periodical titles.
Most firm orders are requested by the department from Geological Survey of Canada.