The French, who were among the earliest explorers in the interior of western North America, described such places as mauvaises terres à traverser, meaning “bad lands to cross.” This is the source of the English term badlands. Writing-on-Stone archeological site, which the Siksika call Áísínai'pi, is a traditional sacred site containing many pieces of rock art of great spiritual significance. The southern Alberta badlands lie within the traditional territory of the Siksika (Blackfoot) people. This frequently leads to the formation of sinkholes and slope failure (e.g., mudslides). Surface erosion is often accompanied by extensive subsurface piping (tunnel erosion) related to existing fractures in the rock. Rapid runoff caused by heavy storms quickly cuts rills (shallow channels) and gullies in the barren, clay-rich rocks, producing rates of erosion of several millimetres per year.

They tend to occur in arid or semi-arid regions, where rain often falls in short, torrential thunderstorms. Geographyīadlands form where weak, relatively unconsolidated (loose) sedimentary rocks such as shale, siltstone and poorly cemented sandstone are exposed to vigorous erosion processes. The 7,825 ha park was designated a United Nations World Heritage Site in 1979, partly on the basis of its spectacular badlands, which are the largest in Canada. They flank the river for 300 km, culminating in their most impressive display in Dinosaur Provincial Park, where world-famous dinosaur fossils have been discovered.

Badlands are particularly prevalent along the river valleys of southern Alberta, especially along the Red Deer River.

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