The ‘Intellectual Rights’ within the metadata associated with each KNZ data set determines the exact data and metadata use agreement between the data user and the KNZ LTER site. KNZ LTER data and metadata may be released under the license: CC BY - Attribution. This license lets others distribute, remix, tweak, and build upon KNZ work (even commercially), as long as the KNZ program is credited for the original creation. Alternatively, some KNZ LTER data and metadata may be released into the public domain: CC0 - No Rights Reserved. CC0 states that data are placed in the public domain, so that others may freely build upon, enhance and reuse the works for any purposes without restriction under copyright or database law. In either case, users of KNZ data are referred to the following guidelines:

"The consumer of these data ("Data User" herein) has an ethical obligation to cite it appropriately in any publication that results from its use. The Data User should realize that these data may be actively used by others for ongoing research and that coordination may be necessary to prevent duplicate publication. The Data User is urged to contact the authors of these data if any questions about methodology or results occur. Where appropriate, the Data User is encouraged to consider collaboration or coauthorship with the authors. The Data User should realize that misinterpretation of data may occur if used out of context of the original study. While substantial efforts are made to ensure the accuracy of data and associated documentation, complete accuracy of data sets cannot be guaranteed. All data are made available "as is." The Data User should be aware, however, that data are updated periodically and it is the responsibility of the Data User to check for new versions of the data. The data authors and the repository where these data were obtained shall not be liable for damages resulting from any use or misinterpretation of the data. Thank you".