Global Forest Watch vs Weather MCP
A side-by-side look at the Global Forest Watch and Weather MCP MCP servers: transport, auth, tools, quality signals, and the config to install either one in Claude, Cursor, Windsurf or VS Code.
W
Weather MCPEnvironment & Nature · Local subprocess (stdio)Free, open-source MCP server giving AI assistants 17 weather tools — a one-call weather summary plus forecasts, alerts, air quality, marine, radar, lightning, rivers, wildfires, and historical data back to 1940. Ask by city name or coordinates. Built on free public APIs (NOAA, Open-Meteo). No API keys, no signup.67GreatAuth: no auth requiredVerdict: choose Global Forest Watch for environment & nature work as a local process; choose Weather MCP for environment & nature as a local process. You can also run both side by side in one mcpServers block.
Which MCP server should you choose?
Choose Global Forest Watch when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Environment & Nature domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- You want tools like
gfw_datasets, gfw_dataset, gfw_query.
WChoose Weather MCP when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Environment & Nature domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- Its auth model fits you: No auth required.
- You want tools like
get_forecast, get_current_conditions, get_alerts.
Feature & specification comparison
Rows where the two servers differ are marked.
| Spec | W Weather MCP | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Environment & Nature | Environment & Nature |
| Quality signal | 59/100 · Good | 67/100 · Great |
| Install command | Confirmed | Confirmed |
| Transport | Local subprocess (stdio) | Local subprocess (stdio) |
| Auth | Not declared | No auth required |
| Pricing | Not declared | Free |
| Required env vars | None listed | None listed |
| Verified owner | Community listing | Community listing |
| GitHub stars | 0 | 49 |
| Directory activity | 2 views 0 installs 0 upvotes | 1 views 0 installs 0 upvotes |
| Tools | 3 | 17 |
| Full listing | View Global Forest Watch | View Weather MCP |
Tools & capabilities
Global Forest Watch tools 3
gfw_datasetsList or keyword-search the Global Forest Watch Data API catalogue — the WRI/UMD datasets behind GFW: annual tree cover loss and gain, primary forest extent, GLAD/RADD deforestation alerts, fire alerts (VIIRS/MODIS), protected areas, concessions, Aqueduct water risk, carbon flux. Returns each dataset name (pass it to gfw_dataset or gfw_query), its title, tags and published versions. Keyless. AUTHORITATIVE for what forest-change data GFW actually publishes.gfw_datasetFull detail for ONE Global Forest Watch dataset — metadata (source, citation, spatial resolution, geographic coverage, update frequency, cautions, licence) plus its version list. Pass a version (or "latest") to also get that version's status, assets and field/band list, which is what gfw_query needs to build a valid SQL statement. Keyless.gfw_queryRun a read-only SQL SELECT against one Global Forest Watch dataset version — e.g. tree cover loss hectares by year inside an area, or deforestation alerts inside a bounding box. The table is always called `data`; use gfw_dataset to see the available columns first. Almost every GFW dataset (tree cover loss/gain, GLAD/RADD alerts, fire alerts, carbon, primary forest) is a RASTER TILE SET, not a plain table — a `geometry` (GeoJSON Polygon/MultiPolygon) is REQUIRED to scope the pixels queried, or the API answers 422 "Raster tile set queries require a geometry". Omit it only for the few vector-table datasets (e.g. wdpa_protected_areas). Requires your own free GFW API key, passed as _apiKey.
Weather MCP tools 17
get_forecastDaily/hourly forecasts up to 16 days by coordinates, saved location, or city name, plus a 2-hour, 15-minute precipitation nowcast in North America and Central Europe (`granularity="minutely"`) (NOAA publishes 7 days daily and ~6.5 days hourly in the US, and says so when you ask for more; `source="o…get_current_conditionsCurrent weather: temperature, wind, humidity, pressure; NOAA station observations in the US (plus heat index/wind chill, snow depth, optional NOAA fire-weather indices), Open-Meteo model data elsewhere (with an optional computed Fosberg fire-weather index), or real airport station observations worl…get_alertsActive watches, warnings, and advisories sorted by severity; official national warnings for the US (NOAA), Canada (ECCC), 38 European countries (MeteoAlarm), India (NDMA SACHET), the Philippines (PAGASA), Indonesia (BMKG), and Japan (JMA)get_historical_weatherHourly/daily observations from 1940 to presentget_weather_summaryOne-call overview combining current conditions, forecast, and alerts (optionally air quality and lightning); a life-threatening NWS alert is surfaced once above the whole summary, not once per sectionsearch_locationGeocode place names to coordinates ("Paris" → 48.85, 2.35)get_air_qualityAQI (US/European scales), pollutants, UV index, health guidance; current pollen levels for European locations (or worldwide with an optional key); optional day-grouped forecast up to 7 days with per-day peak AQI and UVget_marine_conditionsWave height, swell, ocean currents, sea state on WMO Code Table 3700 (Douglas sea scale) with a severity marker and legend — includes Great Lakes and major US bays; forecast up to 16 daysget_weather_imageryPrecipitation radar (static or 2-hour animated loops) + GOES satellite imagery; `composite: true` returns a finished radar map over a base map as an imageget_lightning_activityReal-time strike detection with 4-level proximity safety assessmentget_river_conditionsUS: NWPS gauge levels, flood stages, streamflow, rise/fall trends, forecast series. Great Britain: Environment Agency observed river levels against each gauge's published typical range. Elsewhere: GloFAS modeled discharge snapped to the nearest river channel, with ensemble forecastget_wildfire_infoUS: named incidents with containment, size, and safety guidance from the nearest *uncontained* fire. Elsewhere: NASA FIRMS satellite heat detections (VIIRS, near real-time), clustered with distance, bearing, and intensity- +5 more on the listing page
Ready-to-paste client configs
Paste either block (or both) into your client config, e.g. claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json. We only show a config when the install command is confirmed.
Global Forest Watch
{
"mcpServers": {
"global-forest-watch": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@pipeworx/mcp-global-forest-watch"
]
}
}
}
Weather MCP
{
"mcpServers": {
"weather-mcp-2": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@dangahagan/weather-mcp@latest"
]
}
}
}
Frequently asked questions
Global Forest Watch is categorized under Environment & Nature and uses a local stdio subprocess. Weather MCP belongs to Environment & Nature and uses a local stdio subprocess. Pick Global Forest Watch for environment & nature work and Weather MCP for environment & nature.
Copy the mcpServers block from the config section on this page into your client's config (for example claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json), then fully restart the client.
Global Forest Watch has no declared pricing — check the project's own site. Weather MCP is listed as free. Auth: no auth required. If a server needs environment variables such as API keys, define them under the env key in your client's MCP config.
Yes. MCP clients support multiple servers: add global-forest-watch and weather-mcp-2 as separate keys in the same mcpServers object, and your assistant will call tools from either one.
On AllMCPs, Global Forest Watch has a quality signal of 59/100 (Good) with 2 views, 0 installs and 0 GitHub stars. Weather MCP has 67/100 (Great) with 1 views, 0 installs and 49 GitHub stars.