Microproduct Data GuideBeginner

CWFIS M3 Perimeter Estimates

Canadian M3 estimated wildfire perimeters from NRCan CWFIS for showing approximate fire-footprint context.

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At a Glance

Difficulty
Beginner — comfortable for a first prototype
Size
Tiny · ≤0.01 GB
Formats
GeoJSON
Access
API
API Key
Not Required
Provider
Natural Resources Canada CWFIS
Updates
Daily
Last Verified
Sep 28, 2026
Source Type
Government Source
Data Terms
Open Government Licence Canada 2.0 with Natural Resources Canada attribution.
  • Python Syntax Checked
  • Runnable Notebook

From Source to Product Signal

Test a Product Idea in Four Steps

The legacy CWFIS WFS serves public:m3polygons, an M3 perimeter-estimate layer distinct from reported incident points and authoritative evacuation boundaries. Start with three GeoJSON features and retain their estimated dates. NRCan's 2026 service placemat identifies this layer by name.

1

Check the Setup

  • Python 3.10 or newer
  • An internet connection
  • The requests Python package
2

Access the Data

  1. 1.Read the official CWFIS service catalogue and Canadian open licence.
  2. 2.Request three M3 polygon features from the named WFS layer.
  3. 3.Inspect estimate dates and geometry before rendering.
Open Official Source
3

Run the Python Example

Install the packages, then run the notebook cell.

python -m pip install requests

import requests

response = requests.get(
    "https://cwfis.cfs.nrcan.gc.ca/geoserver/public/ows",
    params={"service": "WFS", "version": "2.0.0", "request": "GetFeature",
            "typeNames": "public:m3polygons", "outputFormat": "application/json",
            "srsName": "EPSG:4326", "count": 3}, timeout=30,
)
response.raise_for_status()
for estimate in response.json()["features"][:3]:
    row = estimate["properties"]
    print(row.get("uid"), row.get("lastdate"), row.get("area"))
4

Test a Useful Signal

Inspect Canadian M3 Footprints

Review three estimated fire footprints before map rendering.

  1. 01Keep polygon ID, estimate date, and stated area.
  2. 02Compare footprint age with current incident reports.
  3. 03Explain why an M3 estimate is not a surveyed perimeter or evacuation map.

Related Datasets

Dataset Details

Natural Resources Canada CWFIS is a government source. Last verified 2026-09-28. Temporal coverage: M3 fire-perimeter estimates since 2003.

Data Types

Geospatial

Geography

Canada

Formats

GeoJSON

Provider

Natural Resources Canada CWFIS

Data Terms

Open Government Licence Canada 2.0 with Natural Resources Canada attribution.

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