[1] Farmland covers about 94% of the land, and is the dominant domestic economic activity of the zone, as well as an important factor in Canadian foreign trade.

[1] Establishment of the agricultural industry has had a significant effect on the land, which now retains "little of the natural vegetation"[1] it had before the area was settled.

[2] Characterised by vast tracts of flat and rolling plains, it nonetheless exhibits a variety of relief, including hummocky lands and deep river valleys.

[3] The strata of sedimentary rock are from the Cretaceous and Tertiary periods, and contain "isolated pockets and cracks [with] rich reservoirs of oil and gas".

These include Edmonton, Calgary, Regina, Saskatoon and Winnipeg, as well as Brandon, Moose Jaw, Red Deer and Lethbridge.