Construction begins on Library and Archives Canada's new preservation facility

GATINEAU, QC, Aug. 12, 2019 /CNW/ - On August 12, Library and Archives Canada began construction on its new 12,900 square-metre preservation facility in Gatineau. The addition of this new building, which will be linked to the existing state-of-the-art Preservation Centre, will allow LAC to consolidate an ever-growing collection and guarantee the long-term preservation of analogue textual holdings and audiovisual materials, which require very special preservation conditions.

The facility also will be the first net-zero carbon centre dedicated to archival preservation in the Americas when it goes into operation by summer 2022.

At the groundbreaking ceremony, Dr. Guy Berthiaume, Librarian and Archivist of Canada, called it a great day for the continued preservation of Canada's cherished and invaluable documentary heritage.

The centre will provide 21,240 cubic metres, or the equivalent of about 8.5 Olympic-sized swimming pools, of collection storage capacity and will also be one of the world's largest facilities equipped with an automated storage and retrieval system for archival collections.

Associated Links

• New LAC archival preservation facility

SOURCE Library and Archives Canada