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Coweeta Home > Data Management Policy

DATA POLICIES

Introduction:
The Coweeta LTER program has established the following data policy to both increase public and private awareness of our research activities and to provide a mechanism for the appropriate transmission of information to interested parties. The data policy of the Coweeta LTER project applies to data: 1) funded by, 2) collected on-site, or 3) relevant to the LTER research program. We require metadata for all research meeting the aforementioned criteria. Projects funded entirely by the NSF LTER program also must comply with Type 1 and Type 2 data requirements (see below). The Coweeta data policy pertains to projects that are currently active, although we strongly urge investigators with either non-NSF funded, or completed projects to enter their data (or at the very least metadata) in the Coweeta Web Site. All requests for, and subsequent use of, data residing on the Coweeta LTER project web site must be accompanied by completion of the DATA USERS AGREEMENT (see below).

Data Types:
TYPE 1
Type 1 data are available to all interested parties with few or no restrictions other than those stipulated in the DATA USERS AGREEMENT. Type 1 data sets include those routinely collected by either LTER Co-PI's or associated investigators that are crucial to multiple research projects (e.g., climatological, hydrological and similar data). These data will be made available within 3 years of collection with few or no restrictions other than those stipulated in the DATA USERS AGREEMENT. In addition, all Type 2 data sets automatically will be migrated to Type 1 status after three years has elapsed from the completion of the project (see below).

TYPE 2
Type 2 data are available only with written permission from the Co-PI(s) directing this segment of LTER research (see DATA USERS AGREEMENT). We require this permission for two reasons: 1) to ensure that the data being requested are appropriate for the purposes stated by the requesting investigator, and 2) to ensure that the PI has had sufficient time to process, analyze, synthesize and publish results obtained from these data. A data set will be maintained under Type 2 status for a maximum of three years after completion of the project, after which time it will immediately be migrated to Type 1 status. A project is completed when the PI responsible for this segment of the research determines that all planned publications have been obtained from the data set. The PI will notify the Data Manager when a project has been completed.

The Coweeta Data Policy only is applicable to data on Human Subjects (as defined in the Code of Federal Regulations, title 45 part 46 "Protecting Human Subjects") where it does not conflict with the protections accorded under the aforementioned code as well as those described in Authority: 5 U.S.C. 301; 42 U.S.C. 289, 42 U.S.C. 300v-l(b). In addition, the policy does not apply to data that have restrictions on their distribution (e.g., satellite data, personal economic data)

Data Management Process:
1. Co-PI starts new aspect of research program
2. Meta-data description created and placed on the web (within 6 months of inception)
3. All data collection, analysis, synthesis, completed
4. Manuscript(s) accepted for publication
5. Data placed on web site as Type 2 data
6. Three years pass.  Data migrated to Type 1 status.

The deadlines contained in the data management policy are maximum deadlines and PI's are encouraged to migrate their data to Type 1 status as soon as feasible.

Data Users Agreement:
By downloading and using data collected under the auspices of the Coweeta LTER, the user agrees to the following responsibilities:

1) Before downloading a data set, the user will provide accurate and complete information to the Principal Investigator (PI) responsible for the data set of interest. We provide a web-based method for this purpose.

2) The user agrees not to sell or distribute data provided by the Coweeta LTER program.

3) The user will provide any manuscript for courtesy review by the PI at least 30 days before submitting it for publication.

4) The user will provide one copy of any manuscript which draws upon Coweeta data to the following two addresses:

Attn:  Kathy Flowers, Secretary
Coweeta Hydrologic Laboratory
3160 Coweeta Lab Road
Otto, NC 28763 USA

Attn:  Coweeta LTER Data Manager
Institute of Ecology
University of Georgia
Athens, GA 30602-2202 USA

5) The PI retains all rights to data released to the public, Ecological data sets are dynamic and may change over time. Coweeta LTER and the PI(s) disclaim any responsibility for errors that may or may not exist within online data.

6) The user assumes all responsibility for errors in analysis or judgment associated with online data.

7) Violation of any of the terms of the Data User's Agreement will result in immediate forfeiture of the data, as well as a complete loss of future access privileges to data collected by researchers associated with the Coweeta LTER program.