A Librarian's Guide to Responsible Deaccessioning
Deaccessioning is a normal, necessary part of library collection management. Collections need to stay current, shelves need to stay usable, and sometimes the best thing for a book is to leave the library and find a new home.
But the "how" of deaccessioning matters. Here's a practical guide to handling withdrawn materials in a way that's responsible, efficient, and doesn't create more work for your staff.
Why Books Get Deaccessioned
The reasons are familiar to any librarian:
- Condition — water damage, torn pages, broken spines, mold
- Relevance — outdated information, superseded editions, low circulation
- Space — new acquisitions need room, and shelf space is finite
- Duplication — multiple copies that are no longer needed
Whatever the reason, the goal is the same: make room for materials that better serve your community.
The Disposal Challenge
Here's where it gets tricky. Once books are withdrawn, what do you do with them? Common approaches include:
- Book sales — great for some titles, but labor-intensive and you're still left with unsold inventory
- Donation to other organizations — works sometimes, but most organizations don't want large quantities of random titles
- Recycling — better than the dumpster, but it's a shame when readable books get pulped
- Dumpster — the last resort that too many libraries end up using
A Better Option
This is where BookDrop comes in. We pick up all deaccessioned materials — for free. No sorting required, no minimum quantity, and no cherry-picking. We take everything and handle the sorting, redistribution, and recycling on our end.
Books with resale value get listed and sold to readers. Books without resale value get recycled responsibly. Either way, your staff doesn't have to deal with it.
Making It Easy on Your Team
The biggest concern we hear from librarians is time. Deaccessioning already takes effort — the last thing you need is a complicated disposal process on top of it.
Here's what working with BookDrop looks like:
- Withdraw your materials as you normally would
- Box or cart them to a staging area
- Contact us to schedule a pickup
- We come, we load, we leave
That's it. Many of our library partners schedule regular pickups — monthly or quarterly — so the process becomes routine.
Ongoing vs. One-Time
We work with libraries on both models. If you're doing a major weeding project, we can handle a large one-time pickup. If you have a steady flow of withdrawn materials, we'll set up a recurring schedule.
Ready to simplify your deaccessioning process? Contact us to set up a partnership.