Extensive forests cover about half of it and grassland and vineyards account for a further quarter.
Located in the south of the country, the area has a wealth of scenery and cultural sights ranging from the glacier-covered mountain of Dachstein to the gentle hills of the wine country south of the provincial capital of Graz. But the mountains of Upper Styria in the north, with their rich resources of iron ore and the iron and steel industry which has grown up there, have also given the economy of the province a distinctly industrial character. In the west of the province lignite is mined and there are also rich deposits of magnesite, which is exported, along with magnesite products, to many countries. The mining and steel industries have their research center in the Mining University in Leoben. The iron, steel and engineering industries are based in the Mur and M rz valleys.