Although flooding has the potential to cause problems in the Red River valley, the south-western part of the province is more likely to suffer from drought.

Captain Palliser explored the Canadian prairies during the 1850s and then identified a huge region in the plains as being unsuitable for agriculture. The area is known as the "Palliser Triangle", and covers the southern portion of Alberta and Saskatchewan and south-western Manitoba. Palliser believed that the area was too arid to allow grain to be grown. Indeed, during periods when there is not enough rain, the region can become as dry as a desert; that happened during the severe droughts in the 1930s, in 1980 and again in 2002.

Yet, underneath, lies thick, black, rich, damp soil, one of the most fertile soils in the country. At times of sufficient rainfall, the Triangle can be a true paradise for farmers, but the dry periods can provoke devastating ecological and economic crises.