The LITS Project - Consultation on NERC Data Policy

Open letter to the NERC/LITS community

Dear All,

You may remember that I wrote to you some time ago about the “Long-term Individual-based Times-Series” (LITS) project. One of the aims of this project is to explore the appropriateness of NERC’s current data policy (summary attached) to LITS-type data. These data sets are both very valuable and very difficult to collect, and we think it important that NERC’s data policy both encourages the collection of this information, and fairly rewards the scientists who collect it by allowing them a reasonable opportunity to publish their work

We would like to initiate a discussion of how the existing policy relates to LITS-type data. In the first instance we would like to hear, via email, your views on the policy as it stands and any concerns about it that you wish to raise. Issues you might want to consider include the obligation to deposit data with NERC, the length of time for which a PI may have exclusive access to data collected on a NERC grant, and how NERC’s data policy should deal with long-term projects supported by a series of NERC (and other) grants. We will summarise the responses and if significant issues arise organise a meeting between NERC Swindon Office and scientists who collect LITS data to try to resolve them.

We look forward to hearing from you,

Best wishes,

Owen Jones (owen.jones@imperial.ac.uk) &
The LITS team

The current policy
We summarise the current NERC data policy, below;

(The full policy handbook can be obtained from NERC’s website: http://www.nerc.ac.uk/data/documents/datahandbook.pdf)

1) Data are a resource in their own right and, properly managed and preserved they can be used and reused by future researchers and exploited commercially or educationally.

2) Because environmental data are irreplaceable and expensive to collect, NERC attaches great importance to ensuring that maximum benefits are derived from data once acquired.

3) Due consideration must be given to “post-project” data stewardship prior to being given approval for a “project”. Furthermore, recipients of NERC grants must offer to deposit with NERC a copy of datasets resulting from the research supported. This may be used by bona fide researchers (without prejudice to intellectual property rights). In return, NERC will ensure that scientists/participants in programs of research have a reasonable period to work exclusively on, and publish results from, the data they have collected.

4) NERC will regard data as a potentially tradable asset between NERC and UK/overseas organisations. However, NERC will not charge partners in data acquisition for unprocessed data (but will consider charging when NERC has added value to the data by analysing/interpreting it). NERC will enable access to these data by bona fide scientific researchers for a nominal fee.

5) NERC will encourage access to basic catalogues and indices of NERC data and will market software-based catalogues in their own right.