Map: Prairie Dryness, Drought Worsens in October

Following some improvement in September, abnormal dryness and drought ramped up across Western Canada in October. 

The latest monthly Canadian drought monitor showed 57% of Prairie agricultural lands impacted by abnormal dryness or some form of drought as of the end of October. That is up from 42% at the end of September, although still below 63% in August. 

Most of the deterioration during the month occurred in the southern Prairies, with short-term drought developing throughout southwestern Alberta, southern Saskatchewan, and much of Manitoba amid less than 40% of normal monthly precipitation. 

“Well below normal precipitation and above normal temperatures throughout the southern Prairies resulted in deteriorating conditions in October,” the monitor said.  

On the other hand, central and northern Alberta and portions of Northern Saskatchewan received above to well above normal precipitation in October, alleviating short and longer-term precipitation deficits. 

Abnormally dry and moderate drought conditions expanded across southwestern Alberta due to the warm temperatures, growing precipitation deficits and ongoing impacts such as lower water and soil moisture levels. In central Alberta, drought conditions improved, with reductions to abnormally dry to extreme drought conditions as recent precipitation has reduced long term deficits. 

A pocket of extreme drought around Grande Prairie was significantly reduced in October due to near-normal precipitation and cooler temperatures. Extreme drought in the northeast corner of Alberta was also significantly reduced last month. 

In Saskatchewan, North Battleford and Moose Jaw received only 7% and 6% of normal precipitation, respectively, marking their second and third driest months of October on record. Strong winds and limited rainfall further reduced topsoil moisture across southern and central regions, worsening drought conditions with impacts on topsoil moisture and pasture conditions.  

Abnormally dry to severe drought conditions expanded across southern and east-central Saskatchewan. In contrast, northern Saskatchewan received more rainfall, improving drought conditions in the region.  

Despite a very dry October, soil moisture throughout much of Manitoba remains adequate thanks to well above normal precipitation in September. However, abnormally dry to severe drought conditions did expand across most of southern and central Manitoba. In southern Manitoba, abnormally dry to moderate drought expanded, with two pockets of severe drought emerging, one in the Interlake region and another around Swan River in the west-central region.